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UNIVERSITY  OF  NORTH  CAROLINA 

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THE  LIBRARY  OF  THE 

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NORTH  CAROLINA 

AT  CHAPEL  HILL 


ENDOWBD  BY  THE 

DIALECTIC  AND  PHILANTHROPIC 

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ROME 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

in  2011  with  funding  from 

University  of  North  Carolina  at  Chapel  Hill 


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Arch  of  Titus 


•IROME 


FRANCIS    WHY 


ih  ■ 


NEW    EDITION    REVISED   AND   COMPARED    WITH    THE   LATEST 
AUTHORITIES    BY 

MARIA  HORNOR  LANSDALE 


ILLUSTRATED 


THE  INTERNATIONAL  PRESS 

THE    JOHN    C.  WINSTON    CO. 
PHILADELPHIA 


Copyright,  1897,  by 
HENRY  T.  COAXES  &  CO. 


CONTENTS 


CHAPTER  I. 

PAGE 

First  Impressions — Habits  of  the  People — Trevi  Fountain- 
Column  of  ]M.  Aurelius — Vatican  and  S.  Peter's — Pan- 
theon— Temple  of  Neptune— Forum— S.  Pietro  in  Mon- 
torio — View  from  the  Janiculum,       .....       1 

CHAPTEK  11. 
Forum  Eomanum — Roman  Basilicas — S.  Paolo  extra  Muros 
— S.Paolo  Alle  Tre  Fontane— Pyramid  of  Cestius — Monte 
Testaccio — Pons  Sublicius — The  Coliseum,         .         .         .21 

CHAPTER  HI. 

Street  Scenes — Rospigliosi  Palace — Barberini  Palace— Sciarra 
Gallery — Doria  Palace — Cenci  Palace— The  Ripetta — 
The  Borgo — Castle  of  S.  Angelo — Story  of  the  Cenci — 
Interior  of  Hadrian's  Mole,       ......     43 

CHAPTER  IV. 

Treatment  of  the  Dying — Polidorio  da  Camvaggio — S.  Catli- 
erine    of    Siena — The   Venetian    Palace — Church    of    S. 

,  Marco — S.  Maria  di  Loreto — S.  Francesca  Romana — 
Temple  of  Antoninus  and  Faustina — Basilica  of  Constan- 
tine — Forums — Arches,      .......     70 

CHAPTER  V. 
The  Baths  of  Caracalla— The  Basilica  of  S.  Clemente,  .     91 

CHAPTER  VI. 

The  Pauline  Fountain — The  Church  of  S.  Cecilia— S.  Maria 
in  Trastevere — S.  Onofrio— Theatre  of  Marcellus— Portico 
of      Octavia — Pescheria    Veochia — Ghetto — Rione     della 
Regola — Rotunda  of   the  Sun— S.    Maria  in  Cosmedin — 
Rienzi's  House,  ........   120 

(V) 


vi  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  VII. 

PAGE 

S.  Agnese — Porta  Pia— Basilica  of  S.  Agnese — S.  Costanza — 
The  Catacombs, 137 

CHAPTER  YIII. 

The  Cfelian — S.  Maria  della  Navicella — Mora — S.  Stefano 
Rotondo — Academy  of  S.  Luke — The  Mamertine  Prisons 
— Piazza  del  Campidoglio — Statue  of  M.  Aurelius — Museo 
Capitolino — Palace  of  the  Conservators— Roman  Hospi- 
tals,     159 

CHAPTER  IX. 
Tarpeian   Rock — Temple   of    Jupiter — The   Bambino — The 
Church  of  Ara  Cceli — Bridges — S.   Bartholomew — A  Pre- 
sepio— Festival  of  the  Epiphany— The  University  of  Rome 
— The  Farnesina — The  Pamphili  Gardens,         .         .         .   181 

CHAPTER  X. 

S.  Maria  Sopra  Minerva — Church  of  il  Gesu — S.  Andrew  of 
the  Valley — Convent  of  the  Philippines — The  Kircherian 
^Museum — Porta  Maggiore — Minerva  Medica — S.  Martino 
ai  Monti, 197 

CHAPTER  XL 

The  Colonnade  of  Bernini — The  Basilica  of  S.  Peter— Obe- 
lisk of  Sixtus  V. — Ceremonies  in  S.  Peter's,      .         .         .  213 

CHAPTER  XII. 

Piazza  and  Church  of  S.  Pietro  in  Vincoli — The  Suburra — 
Arch  of  Drusus— Domine  quo  Vadis — Tomb  of  Ciecilia 
Metella — The  Appian  Way — So-called  Grotto  of  Egeria — 
Circus  of  Maxentius,  .......  251 

CHAPTER  XIIL 
Villa  Madama— S.  Agostino— S.  Maria  della  Pace — Raphael 
and  Michael  Angelo-SS.  Lorenzo  e  Damaso — Assassina- 
tion of  Count  Rossi — Farnese  Palace  — Colossal  Hercules 
— Statue  of  Pompey — Tartarughe  Fountain — Mattel  Palace 
— Quadrifrons  Arch — Arch  of  Septimius  Severus  S. 
Giorgio  in  Velabro — The  Aventine — The  Wall  of  Ancus — 
Marcella, 261 


CONTENTS.  vu 

CHAPTEK  XIV.  PAGE 

The  Palatine— The  Circus  Maximus, 285 

CHAPTEK  XV. 

Albano— Lake  of  Nerai — Rocca  di  Papa — Marino — Grotta 
Ferrata — Tusculum — Frascati,    .         .         .         .         .         .310 

CHAPTEE  XVI. 
Trajan's  Forum  and  Column — Constantine — Basilica  of   S. 
John  Lateran — S.  Croce — Piazza  del  Laterano — The  Lat- 
eran  Museum — Ancient  Obelisks,        .....  321 

CHAPTER  XVII. 
The  Colonna  Palace — The  Quirinal — S.  Maria  degli  Angeli 
— Trinita  de  Monti — The  Spanish  Stairs — The  Barcaccia — 
Piazza  di  Spagna,       ........  345 

CHAPTER  XVIII. 

Castellani's  Establishment — Villa  Medici — The  French  Acad- 
emy,   359 

CHAPTER  XIX. 

The  Legend  of  S.  Lanrentius— S.  Laurentius  extra  Muros — 
S.  Prudentiana — TuUia — SS.  Cosma  and  Damiano — S. 
Prassede — S.  Maria  Maggiore,    ......  367 

CHAPTER  XX. 
The  Carnival — The  Artists'   Festival — Villa  Albani — Villa 
Ludovesi,  ..........  384 

CHAPTER  XXI. 

Palazzo  Borghese — S.  Maria  del  Popolo — The  Villa  Bor- 
ghese,  ..........  393 

CHAPTER  XXIL 
Tivoli — Hadrian's  Villa,        .......  404 

CHAPTER  XXIII. 
The  Vatican — Library — Picture  Gallery  — Egyptian  Museum 
— Hall  of  the  Greek  Cross— Etruscan  Museum,  .         .  410 


viii  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER  XXIV. 

PAGE 

The  Vatican  {continued) — The  Lapidary  Museum — The  Chi- 
aramonti  Museum  — The  Braccio  Nuovo — The  Belvedere — 
The  Hall  of  the  Animals— The  Pio-Clementine  Museum — 
The  Hall  of  Busts, 423 

CHAPTER  XXV. 

The  Vatican  [continued) — The  Pope's  Garden — The  Casino  — 
Gallery  of  Maps— Gallery  of  Tapestries — Gallery  of  the 
Candelabra— Hall  of  the  Biga— The  Circular  Hall— Hall 
of  the  Muses— Pius  VI., 446 

CHAPTER  XXVI. 

The  Vatican  (continued) — Raphael  and  Michael  Angelo — The 
Sixtine  Chapel, 464 

CHAPTER  XXVII. 

The  Vatican  (continued) — -Cappella  S.  Lorenzo — The  Stanze 
di  Raffaello — Camera  della  Segnatura,        ....  482 


LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS 


PAGE 

Arch  of  Titus, Frontispiece 

Forum  Komanum, .14 

The  Basilica  of  S.  Paolo  extra  Muros,       ...      32 

The  Violin  Player,  Raphael, 52 

The  Castle  of  S.  Angelo, 74 

The  Basilica  of  S.  Clemente, 92 

Finding  the  Body  of  S.  Cecilia, 120 

Tasso's  Room  at  S.  Onofrio, 128 

Piazza  Bocca  dell  a  Verita, 136 

Porta  S.  Sebastiano, 148 

Portrait  of  Mme.  Le  Brun,  by  herself,      .        .        .        .164 

The  Tarpeian  Rock, 182 

Church  of  S.  Maria  Sopra  Minerva,    .        .        .        .198 

Basilica  of  S.  Peter, 214 

Fresco  in  Sacristy  of  S.  Peter's,  Melozzo  da  Forli,        .     232 

Tomb  of  Cecilia  Metella, 256 

Church  of  S.  Giorgio  in  Velabro,        ....    278 

"Wall  of  Romulus, 284 

The  Palace  of  the  C-esars, 292 

(ix) 


X  LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS. 

PAGE 

The  House  of  Livia, 300 

The  Campagna, 310 

Basilica  of  S.  John  Lateean, 324 

PoETRAiT  of  Maria  Mancini,  O.  Netscher,        .        .        .  346 

Avenue  of  the  Villa  Medici, 360 

Basilica  of  S.  Lorenzo  Fuori  le  Mura,       .        .        .  370 

Grounds  of  the  Villa  Borghese, 392 

Marriage    of    S.    Catherine   in   Vatican    Gallery, 

Murillo, 414 

Statue  of  Augustus,  Braccio  Nuovo,  ....  430 
CuM^AN   Sibyl,  Ceiling   of   Sixtine  Chapel,   Michael 

Angela, 474 

Supposed  Portrait  op  Eaphael,  by  Himself.     Now 

Designated  "Kitratto  di  un  Ignoto,"  Bodolfo  del 

Qhirlandaio, 482 


ROME. 


CHAPTER    I. 

My  first  night  in  Rome  was  spent  under  a  roof  in 
the  street  of  the  Quattro  Fontane,  -svhich,  taking  also 
the  names  of  FeHce  and  Sistina,  leads  to  the  Pincian, 
the  Tuileries  garden  of  the  city  of  Romulus. 

On  the  following  morning  I  stole  away  from  the 
house  to  venture  alone  into  the  labyrinth  of  the  city. 

On  my  right  the  straight  and  hilly  street  made 
with  its  high  walls  a  distant  frame  for  a  conical  belfry 
sketched  against  a  grey  and  rainy  sky.  I  did  not 
know  the  situation  of  Santa  Maria  Maggiore.  I  was 
still  further  from  suspecting  that  in  those  blurred 
swellings  I  saw  the  renowned  Quirinal  and  Viminal 
hills.  The  road  continued  on  the  left  in  absolute 
monotony  :  before  me  in  false  square,  in  an  ill-kept 
court,  arose  a  vast  buUding  with  a  tolerably  new  look 
about  it,  and  Avitli  a  portico  crowded  with  soldiers. 
The  edifice  struck  me  as  handsome  enough  for  a  bar- 
rack I  but  recognizing  it  as  the  famous  palace  of  the 
Barberini,  I  thought  it  too  much  of  a  barrack  for  a 
palace. 

1  (1) 


2  ROME. 

On  the  Piazza  Barberini,  as  you  turn  towards  the 
street,  you  come  upon  a  fountain  of  sombre  color, 
but  in  good  proportion.  Four  dolphins,  whose  gaping 
throats  just  touch  the  water,  are  firmly  bound  together, 
forming  by  their  raised  tails  a  base  for  the  arms  of 
the  Barberini,  and  on  this  is  placed  a  large  shell, 
from  which  the  overflow  falls  away  in  a  shower  of 
pearls.  From  the  midst  of  this  there  rises  a  vigor- 
ous Triton,  Avho  blows  to  the  sky  in  a  horn  of  shell 
form,  from  which  spirts  a  thread  of  Avater.  This 
original  and  robust  conception,  which  reminded  me 
of  Pierre  Puget,  is  the  work  of  Bernini.  I  did  not 
know  it  then,  and  in  giving  this  piece  of  information 
I  am  anticipating  :  I  beg  the  reader  to  allow  me  often 
to  do  this,  and  to  complete  these  first  impressions  by 
the  further  results  of  my  studies,  so  as  to  avoid  re- 
turning to  the  same  subject. 

Turning  my  back  to  the  piazza,  I  took  a  cross 
street,  the  Via  del  Tritone,  lined  with  shops  for  the 
sale  of  smoked  and  greasy  meat,  trattorie  that  the 
Germans  must  frequent,  for  you  see  in  them  a  vast 
quantity  of  sausages  and  schoppes  of  beer ;  the  com- 
mon people,  squatting  or  leaning  against  the  wall 
and  about  the  door,  proud,  idle,  sober. 

In  this  country,  where  fever  is  endemic,  I  do  not 
know  if  temperance  be  an  instinct  of  self-preservation 
or  no ;  but  at  any  rate,  it  is  exemplary  in  all  classes, 
and  in  truth  the  quality  of  the  articles  of  food  de- 
cidedly encourages  this  estimable  trait.     Veal  killed 


FIRST  IMPRESSIONS.  3 

too  young  is  bad  and  scarce ;  mutton  is  stale  and 
hard ;  beef  has  little  taste ;  fowl  is  skinny  and  tough 
as  leather.  Game  only  is  of  superior  quality,  and, 
except  partridge,  it  is  common.  Close  and  insuffi- 
ciently kneaded,  the  bread  is  heavy  ;  the  wine, 
usually  tolerable,  is  carelessly  made  :  it  should  be  ex- 
cellent. Pastry,  made  with  a  mixture  of  oil  and 
dripping,  is  repugnant  enough  to  bring  one's  heart  up. 

For  that  matter,  the  humbler  folk  care  little  about 
these  culinary  elements.  This  is  how  they  sustain 
life :  Twice  a  day  throughout  the  wdnter  large  cal- 
drons of  those  long,  greenish  caidiflowers,  called 
broccoli,  are  prepared  for  the  public  at  the  street- 
corners  ;  these  are  carried  home  on  drainers  or  from 
shop  to  shop.  They  also  eat  a  great  many  large 
lupins,  round  and  yelloAv,  cooked  in  w^ater,  without 
butter  or  dripping.  On  the  broccoli  they  put  salt 
and  oil  with  vinegar.  Add  some  olives,  some  dry 
figs,  cervelas,  parched  and  often  rancid,  and  stalks  of 
fennel ;  and  for  dessert,  nuts,  pinocclii,  the  seeds  of 
the  pine ;  in  summer,  fruits,  especially  watermelon 
and  the  green  gourd  with  purple  pulp,  of  such  a  poor 
flavor,  and  you  have  pretty  nearly  the  substance  of 
the  diet  of  the  people  of  Rome,  if  you  add  a  few  com- 
mon pastries. 

Some  muddy  streets,  without  footways ;  some 
mean,  arched  shops,  with  narrow  doors,  such  as  you 
see  at  La  Chatre  and  Dinan ;  walls  whose  peeUng 
plaster  has   received  a   daubing   of  mud    from    the 


4  ROME. 

splashings  of  the  gutter  ;  now  and  then  a  church  with 
shabby  facade  in  modern  taste,  set  in  among  the 
houses ;  much  animation  and  babbling  among  the 
people  ;  all  the  women  ragged,  and  Avith  hair  elabo- 
rately dressed,  even  those  who  have  none,  terrible  to 
behold — this  is  what  greets  you  at  every  corner.  I 
there  received,  for  the  first  time,  the  distinct  impres- 
sion of  the  odors  or,  more  poetically  speaking,  the 
perfume  of  Rome  5  a  local  exhalation  of  cabbage  or 
broccoli  broth  mixed  with  the  raw  smell  of  roots. 

Gradually,  as  I  advanced  along  a  narroAv  street 
with  the  air  of  a  kitchen-garden,  in  which  the  crowd 
was  thickening,  I  perceived  a  sort  of  indistinct  mur- 
mur like  that  of  the  waves,  which  first  accompanied 
and  then  overwhelmed  the  noises  of  the  throng,  and 
aU  at  once,  at  the  corner  of  the  street,  I  was  dazzled 
by  sheets  of  Avater,  Avhich,  from  a  confused  mass  of 
rocks,  dominated  by  a  building  covered  Avith  statues, 
tumbled  foaming  and  sparkling  on  every  side,  to  be 
engulfed  in  ca\"ernous  holes.  I  was  in  front  of  the 
fountain  of  TrcA^i.  It  is  a  shoAAy  example  of  ostenta- 
tious decoration  as  understood  by  the  school  of  Ber- 
nini. In  the  midst  of  rock-work  and  shell,  Neptune 
emerges  Avith  his  steed  from  the  basement  of  a  palace 
to  which  this  enormous  construction  is  affixed.  The 
pretty  and  graceful  bas-reliefs  represent  the  discovery 
of  the  Acqua  Vergiue  by  a  youthfid  maiden  in  the 
neighborhood  of  Tusculum.  From  the  upper  basins, 
from  the  hoUow  of  rocks  in  which  intertwine  climbing 


FOUNTAIN  OF  TREVI.  0 

plants  carved  on  rough  stone,  streams,  of  Avhose  size 
one  has  no  idea,  spout  forth  on  every  side  ;  cataracts 
or  rivers  ....  in  the  gaiise  of  the  stage !  The 
waters  are  most  Hmpid  and  pure ;  their  sahitary  vir- 
tues being  reputed  to  cure  twelve  disorders.  The 
torrent  breaks  forth  with  the  tumidt  of  a  mountain 
cascade. 

On  the  brink  of  the  lower  basin,  on  an  evening 
when  the  moon  makes  this  agitated  sheet  sparkle 
like  the  steel  links  in  a  hauberk,  you  sometimes  see 
a  young  maiden  bend  over  the  water,  Avhile  a  lover 
eyes  her  pensively.  She  has  drawn,  in  a  new  glass 
which  she  will  break  as  soon  as  used,  some  water  to 
offer  with  a  smile  of  hope  to  the  friend,  about  leaving 
her  to  go  on  a  journey.  It  is  a  popular  tradition,  that 
if  you  have  drunk  from  this  spring,  you  cannot  remain 
absent  from  Rome  for  ever ;  destiny  will  bring  you 
back.  For  some  this  ceremony  is  a  simple  form  of 
vow  ;  praised  be  they  Avho  have  fidl  faith  in  the  pres- 
age of  the  fountain  !  The  Germans  expect  to  make 
it  favorable  by  bribery  5  when  they  have  quaffed  the 
philter  of  return,  they  throw  a  half-penny  into  the 
basin.* 

*  A  very  common  custom,  and  one  by  no  means  confined  to  the 
Germans.   English-speaking  travellers  are  familiar  with  the  lines  : 
"Cast  your  obolus  in  Trevi's  Fountain, 
Drink,  and  returning  home, 
Pray  that  by  stream  and  desert,  vale  and  mountain. 
All  roads  may  lead  alike  to  Rome." 
When  the  basin  is  drained  in  order  to  clean  it  the  beggars  and 


6  EOME. 

Must  we  judge  the  Trevi  fountain  by  the  severe 
principles  of  art  ?  No.  It  is  what  one  might  call 
rococo  triumphant,  endowed  with  a  size  and  exuber- 
ance, which  arc  at  once  its  apology  and  its  vindication. 
If  Ave  could  perceive  this  tower  of  Avater  with  its 
majestic  scaffolding  from  a  distance,  the  impression 
Avould  be  a  complete  victory.  But  it  is  easy  to  under- 
stand that  the  dry  and  poverty-stricken  imitation  of 
such  a  style,  as  it  is  to  be  seen  in  France,  and  espe- 
cially in  Prussia,  is  the  most  objectionable  of  all  the 
forms  of  artistic  decline. 

By  accident  I  came  out  on  the  Corso.  Another 
dream  dispelled :  this  famous  road,  Avhich  serves  as  a 
race-course  during  the  carnival,  is  narroAv  and  fidl  of 
shops,  like  our  Rue  Neuve  des  Petits  Champs,  Avhich 
it  recalls  still  further  by  its  mean  sidewalks.  A 
number  of  small  shops  where  wares  of  no  great  value 
are  retailed ;  a  palace  here  and  there  to  relieve  the 
rows  of  houses.  In  passing  by  the  side  of  the  great 
Colonna  piazza  I  measured  with  my  eyes  the  tall 
Doric  shaft  of  Avhite  marble  Avhich  adorns  the  centre, 
vaguely  provoked  that  the  column  of  Trajan  should 
make  so  slight  an  impression.  Far  from  home  as  I 
was,  a  man  becomes  thoughtless  ;  it  was  the  so-called 
Antonine  pillar,  and  I  never  even  remembered  its 
existence. 

It  Avas  under  Sixtus  V.,  that,  in  restoring  the  half- 
gamins  of  tlie  neighborhood  reap  quite  a  rich  harvest  from  the 
accumulated  offerings  of  tourists. 


COLUMN  OF  ANTONINUS.  7 

buried  pedestal  of  this  monument,  raised  in  honor  of 
Marcus  Aurelius  after  his  victories  over  the  Germans, 
they  mistook  its  real  purpo^,  and  attributed  to  An- 
toninus  Pius  an  erection  that  only  dates  from  his  suc- 
cessor. The  old  pedestal  with  its  bas-reliefs*  was 
placed  by  Gregory  XVI.  in  the  middle  of  the  Giar- 
dino  della  Pigna,  so  called  because  in  the  great  semi- 
circular niche  of  Bramante  there  figures,  between  two 
iron  peacocks,  a  large  bronze  pineapple — funeral 
emblems  taken  from  the  Pantheon  of  Agrippa,  and 
not,  as  has  been  said,  from  Hadrian's  Mole.f  The 
vast  square  where  the  column  of  Marcus  Aurelius 
rises  is  monumental,  surrounded  as  it  is  by  the 
Ferrajuoli  and  Cliigi  palaces, — the  last  raised  by  the 
nephews  of  Alexander  VII., — as  well  as  the  Piombino 
palace,  which  on  the  Corso  faces  the  building  of  the 
Grand'  Garde,  supported  on  a  long  peristyle  whose 
pUlars  came  from  the  excavations  of  the  ancient  city 
of  Veii.     As  I  left  the  Corso  I  met  an  old  friend,  an 

*  This  pedestal  belonged  to  the  real  column  of  Antoninus  Pius, 
which  was  broken  up  to  mend  the  obelisk  in  the  Piazza  di  Monte 
Citorio. 

t  The  Pine-cone  has  always  been  the  central  ornament  of  a 
large  fountain  or  basin  or  pond.  .  .  .  Pope  Symmachus  .  .  .  re- 
moved the  Pine  cone  from  its  ancient  place,  most  probably  from 
Agrippa's  artiticial  lake  in  the  Campus  Martins,  and  used  it  for 
adorning  the  magniticent  fountain  which  lie  had  built  in  the 
centre  of  the  so-called  Paradise  of  St.  Peter's.  .  .  .  The  two 
lovely  bronze  peacocks  are  supposed  to  have  come  from  the  same 
fountain. — Lanciani,  Ancient  Rome  in  the  Light  of  Recent  Discover- 
ies, p.  286. 


8  KOME. 

abbe,  who  took  me  by  the  arm,  saying,  "  Come,  my 
good  friend,  I  shall  take  you  straight  to  St.  Peter's." 
So  to  St.  Peter's  Ave  Avent. 

From  the  Piazza  Borghese  to  the  bridge  of  St. 
Angelo  you  folloAV  an  interminable  roAv  of  Avretehed- 
looking  streets,  Avliich  reach  downright  repidsiveness 
as  you  approach  the  Via  di  Tordinone.  This  ugli- 
ness at  last  amuses  you.  Besides,  as  I  look  about,  I 
listen  to  the  abbe  with  all  my  ears ;  thanks  to  him 
this  polypus  of  streets  becomes  full  of  life.  At  a 
point  where  tAvo  lanes  divide,  he  sIioaa's  me  the 
Albergo  dell'  Orso,  Avhere  ]\Iontaigne  once  lodged. 
Nothing  has  been  changed  there ;  nothing  does 
change  in  Rome  :  wagoners  and  market  people  still 
put  up  their  carts  under  this  gatcAA'ay,  Avhich  AA'as 
ancient  AAdien  the  Bordelais  gentleman  dismounted 
with  his  suite. 

Presently  with  the  satisfaction  of  a  vision  realized, 
I  recognized  the  bridge  of  St.  Angelo  and  Hadrian's 
Mole.  My  companion  laid  himself  out  to  distract  my 
attention  ;  he  named  a  hundred  objects,  and  flashed 
before  my  eyes  a  hundred  spots  teeming  Avith  asso- 
ciations. I  Avas  surprised  by  the  breadth  of  the 
Tiber  and  the  extent  of  the  buildings  of  the  Santo 
Spirito  Hospital. 

At  last,  at  the  end  of  the  Borgo  Nuoa^o,  from  the 
bottom  of  the  Piazza  Rusticucci,  Ave  discerned  the 
facade  of  St.  Peter,  colossal  collet  of  the  ring  described 
by  the  colonnades  of  Bernini. 


FIKST  SIGHT  OF  ST.  PETEE'S.  9 

This  was  the  great  disappomtraent  of  the  day. 
The  vain  majesty  Avhich  renders  this  gigantic  work 
empty  and  dumb  struck  me  with  a  sense  of  dismay 
that  was  ahnost  choking. 

From  the  end  of  the  Piazza  the  columns  of  Ber- 
nini connect  themselves  easily  with  the  fagade,  on 
each  side  of  which  they  seem  to  mark  nearly  a  right 
angle.  But  when,  as  I  went  forward,  I  saw  them 
fold  in  a  circle  behind  me,  and  thus  form,  with  the 
portal,  a  sort  of  scorpion  with  a  double  tail,  it  all 
seemed  to  me  an  abuse  of  a  privilege,  to  pile  stone 
on  stone  for  the  mere  amusement  of  the  eye.  The 
vastness  of  the  work  should  have  made  a  great  im- 
pression :  nothing  of  the  kind ;  the  immensity  of  the 
proportions  escaped  me,  and  the  commonplace  style 
extinguished  whatever  interest  the  whole  ought  to 
have  inspired. 

Looking  at  the  ground,  I  found  the  open  space 
well  paved ;  the  obehsk  of  8ixtus  V.  interested  me, 
especially  on  account  of  Fontana  ;*  the  three-story 
arcades  of  the  Loggia,  glazed  as  they  are  at  the 
present  day,  affected  me  like  an  enormous  cage,  and 
nothing,  in  truth — I  confess  it  to  my  shame — noth- 
ing within  me  woidd  have  stirred,  had  not  the  abbe 
pointed  out  behind  the  other  buildings  a  small,  Ioav 
roof  on  a  corner  of  bare  wall,  saying,  "'Tis  the  roof 
of  the  vSistine  Chapel." 

*  Domenico  Fontana  superintended  the  erection  of  the  obelisk 
in  its  present  position. 


10  KOME. 

To  enter  that  sanctuary  was  not  to  be  thought  of 
in  my  present  state  of  mind.  I  even  refused  to  enter 
the  church. 

In  the  open  space  I  had  noticed  a  carriage  pass 
by,  which  pulled  up  at  the  foot  of  the  great  steps. 
I  thought  the  vehicle  and  its  horses  ridiculously  small. 
There  got  down  from  it  two  or  three  ants.  .  .  . 
When  we  came  in  front  of  the  portico,  the  abbe 
said  to  me  gently,  "Place  yourself  quite  close — closer; 
there,  measure  with  your  arms  the  diameter  of  these 
columns  and  their  flutings." 

Their  size  Avas  indeed  formidable ;  statues  might 
have  been  niched  in  the  flutings  !  "  Come  away,"  I 
cried  overwhelmed.  My  guide  was  a  trifle  discour- 
aged, and  I  was  no  less  so  at  responding  so  ill  to  his 
kindness.  "  I  have  no  longer,"  I  said,  "  any  occa- 
sion to  seek  the  origin  of  our  decline  of  the  last  two 
centuries ;  from  Louis  XIII.  to  Thermidor,  all  is 
there,  down  to  the  endive  wreaths  of  our  Pantheon 
Ste.  Genevieve." 

"  The  basilica  of  St.  Peter's,"  said  my  friend,  "  has 
one  peculiarity :  as  you  approach  all  its  faults  stare  you 
in  the  face,  and  its  aspect  surprises  nobody  ;  but  the 
more  you  visit  it,  the  more  do  unexpected  revelations 
crop  up ;  until  there  comes  a  moment  when  surprise, 
gradually  developed,  becomes  prodigious — amazement 
and  marvelling  admiration  springing  up  by  degrees. 
As  soon  as  you  can  appreciate  St.  Peter's,  you  Avill 
have  taken  a  great  step." 


PANTHEON  OF  AGKIPPA.  11 

But  in  what  direction  !  thought  I,  with  inward  dis- 
quiet. 

I  had  time  to  reflect  on  it ;  for  the  abbe  left  me 
for  half  an  hour,  to  execute  in  passing  a  commission 
at  the  house  of  an  Eminent  Excellency  who  received 
that  day. 

We  mounted  as  high  as  the  third  story  of  a  Paris 
house,  and  I  waited  for  my  companion  in  the  ante- 
chamber, where  loitered,  in  an  indolence  quite  in 
harmony  with  my  own  discouraged  state,  groups  of 
valets,  very  important  and  in  very  poor  feather.  A 
few  poor  Wretches  crouched  on  benches  :  the  valets 
of  the  cardinals  aifect  a  diplomatic  style,  being  ex- 
tremely ceremonious  under  antiquated  and  rich  liv- 
eries, too  large,  too  narrow,  or  too  long  for  them. 
Pretentious  disclosures  of  domestic  distress,  each  of 
these  cast-off  garments  must  have  passed  into  the 
possession  of  half  a  score  of  dignitaries,  and  held  as 
many  lackeys  as  a  sentry-box  shelters  sentinels. 

My  mentor  next  brought  me  by  a  meshwork  of 
alleys  to  the  Pantheon  of  Agrippa,  which  he  made 
me  enter  without  any  preparation.  I  was  more 
struck  by  the  Roman  character — at  once  bold  and 
massive— of  the  portico,  added  later,  than  impressed 
by  it,  having  visited  the  Greek  temples  at  Psestum. 
Still  I  regarded  with  interest  a  monument  raised  at 
the  dawn  of  the  age  of  Augustus.  I  went  out,  I  walked 
around  it,  looked  at  it  from  the  bottom  of  the  piazza, 
and  returned  again,  never  wearied  of  examining  so 


12  ROME. 

precious  an  example  of  the  art  of  building  at  the  end 
of  the  Republic. 

From  a  height  of  forty-four  metres  or  more,  the 
light  pours  down  with  the  sun  or  rain,  by  an  opening 
of  twenty-eight  feet  in  diameter,  on  the  marbles  and 
porphyry  roses  with  Avhich  the  middle  of  the  temple 
is  floored.  I  have  seen,  while  vespers  were  being 
sung,  the  azure  of  the  air  reflected  in  a  pool  of  water, 
as  well  as  the  vault  on  which  the  sun  describes  his 
progress  by  tracing  on  it  luminous  ellipses. 

Erected  B.C.  27  by  M.  Agrippa,  and  originally 
dedicated  (Pliny  tells  us)  to  Jupiter  the  Avenger,  the 
Pantheon  whose  dome  offers  a  very  model  of  build- 
ing is,  as  has  been  said,  fronted  by  a  portico  or  peri- 
style or  sort  of  hors  (Voenvre,  which  rests  on  sixteen 
enormous  monolithic  columns  of  oriental  granite, 
crowned  by  the  finest  capitals  that  Rome  has  be- 
queathed to  us.  These  columns,  eight  in  front,  are 
doubled  by  a  second  row  5  engaged  pilasters  form  a 
third  against  the  building  itself.  Here,  mark  a 
peculiarity,  which  produces  an  illusion  as  to  the 
depth  of  the  portico.  Instead  of  being  arranged 
in  parallel  lines  forming  right  angles  with  the 
steps,  these  columns  radiate  gradually,  in  such  a 
way  that  from  the  middle  of  the  piazza,  where 
those  of  the  first  row  that  support  the  pediment 
ought  to  conceal  those  of  the  second  and  the  third 
row,  we  see  them  on  the  contrary  in  echelons,  be- 
cause   their    slightly    oblique    position    produces    an 


PANTHEON  OF  AGRIPPA.  13 

imaginary  perspective,  whose  result  is  to  throw  tlie 
distances  back. 

This  piazza  of  the  Pantheon,  cleared  by  Eugenius 
IV.  of  the  ruins,  which  included  basalt  lions,  a  bronze 
head  of  M.  Agrippa,  a  chariot,  and  a  porphyry  sar- 
cophagus in  which  Clement  XII.  made  his  bed,  this 
little  piazza,  inherited  by  the  hucksters  with  their 
petty  trade,  was  once  a  wild  and  mysterious  spot,  the 
valley  of  the  She-Goat ;  swamps  bristling  with  reeds, 
surrounded  with  underwood,  in  the  midst  of  Avhich 
the  second  prodigy  of  the  genesis  of  Rome  was  ac- 
complished— the  disappearance  of  Romulus.  It  was 
at  the  end  of  the  seventeenth  century  that  the  Dogana 
di  Terra  was  installed  in  the  remains  of  a  temple  of 
the  second  century,  dedicated  to  Neptune.  The  old 
building  was  vaulted,  and,  seen  from  the  inside,  the 
back  part  of  the  architrave  and  the  base  of  the  vault 
seem  like  a  rock  raised  in  the  air,  and  resting  on  a 
wall.  We  must  know  that  Borromini,  avIio  restored 
two  centuries  ago  the  frieze  and  the  entablature,  con- 
nected the  Avhole  with  a  coating  of  stucco,  which 
produces  the  illusion.  The  ancient  Corinthian  en- 
gaged columns  in  the  modern  building  have  branches 
of  olive  among  the  acanthus  of  their  capitals,  but  the 
dehcacy  of  these  capitals  is  far  from  equalling  the 
purity  of  those  of  the  Pantheon.  Fires  have  cracked 
the  shafts,  torn  like  the  trunks  of  trees  that  the  light- 
ning has  blasted.  In  the  court,  among  bales,  boxes, 
and  carts,  a  whole  population  of  clerks  and  draymen 


14  ROME. 

is  busy.  Incongruous  spectacle,  that  dead  ruin, 
which  encloses  and  displays  in  its  bosom  a  liouse  full 
of  life.* 

What  one  observes  of  the  habits  of  these  people  con- 
tributes also  to  obliterate  the  present  age  ;  as  in  the 
time  of  king  Anarchus,  folks  go  and  buy  at  a  stall  at 
the  corner  their  victuals  ready  cooked,  and  their 
sauce  elsewhere.  The  vessels  of  brown  earthenware, 
the  vases  shaped  like  amphorae ;  the  display  in  front 
of  the  shops  of  a  quantity  of  wares  that  for  a  century 
have  never  been  used  anywhere  else ;  the  revelation 
of  a  careless  indolence  so  unusual  in  these  days,  and 
the  visible  absence  of  any  attempt  to  procure  cus- 
tomers,— all  this  makes  it  seem  like  a  congregation 
of  gay  and  sympathetic  shadows,  and  one  soon  for- 
gets what  point  of  chronology  has  been  arrived  at. 

I  do  not  know  either  how  we  reached  a  certain 
point,  where  the  abbe  suddenly  bade  me  raise  my 
eyes  and  look  around.  We  were  crossing  trans- 
versely on  a  sort  of  raised  road  a  long  irregular 
space  of  unequal  levels,  from  which  rose  right  and  left 
columns  with  their  architraves  supported  in  the  air, 
spectres  of  temples  raised  on  a  confusion  of  marble 
skeletons,  plans  of  basilicas  sketched  by  their  floor- 
ing ;  while,  as  at  Pompeii,  ancient  ways  with  their 
footpaths  displayed  the  squares  of  their  Pelasgic  pave- 
ment, and  lost  themselves  under  the  ruins.     A  tri- 

*  This  building  is  now  the  Exchange. 


Forum  Romanum 


VISION  OF  THE  ANCIENT  WORLD.  15 

iimphal  arch  on  which  a  shadow  fell  like  a  veil  reared 
up  in  front  of  me,  from  a  deep  trench,  its  attica  and 
entablature,  where  I  might  have  read  the  name  of 
Septimius  :  on  the  top  of  a  neighboring  hill,  cypresses 
bristled  on  wall-fronts  and  open  vaults  ;  finally,  in  the 
distance,  shutting  in  the  little  valley,  beyond  a  white 
portal  on  a  background  of  purple  mountain,  there 
spread  out  the  vast  mass  of  the  Coliseum,  which 
seemed  to  find  only  an  accompanying  accessory  in 
the  facade  of  a  church  flanked  by  a  convent  and  sur- 
mounted by  a  sombre  Byzantine  tower The 

Coliseum  had  blue  shadows,  Hke  the  reverse  of  some 
Alpine  peak ;  the  circumference  shone  with  the  bur- 
nished gold  of  the  sun  and  the  ages. 

Meanwhile,  without  letting  me  pause,  the  abbe, 
leaning  on  ray  shoulder  and  pointing  with  his  finger, 
named  Cicero  and  the  tribune,  Pompey  and  Caesar, 
Virginius  and  Nero,  intermingled  Avitli  the  gods  who 
saw  the  greatness  of  Eome.  I  had  divined  that  it 
was  the  Forum,  and  there  resounded  in  my  agitated 
breast  the  salvo  of  great  names  and  great  deeds,  sud- 
denly fired  by  all  the  cannons  of  history  ! 

I  reckon  here  one  of  the  three  most  overwhelming 
sensations  that  a  spectacle  ever  gave  me.  The  two 
others  were  :  the  first  sight  of  the  Alpine  glaciers, 
four  thousand  feet  above  the  Lake  of  Geneva ;  and 
my  arrival  one  evening,  by  the  arcades  at  the  bot- 
tom, on  the  Piazza  of  St.  Mark  at  Venice. 

It  seems  that  I  passed  next  through  the  Trastevere 


16  ROME. 

without  understanding  eitlier  why  or  where  I  was 
being  carried  along  so  swiftly.  I  noticed  three  streets 
by  reason  of  the  monotony  of  their  names  :  the  Lun- 
gara,  the  Lungarina,  the  Lungaretta.  In  the  midst 
of  this  rapid  flight  one  impression  struck  me,  and  re- 
mained with  me.  Close  to  the  Borgo,  by  the  ancient 
Septimian  gate,  at  the  corner  of  the  Via  Santa  Dor- 
otea,  in  the  old  rag-stone  wall  of  a  dirty  building,  is 
the  outline  of  the  bricked-up  arch  of  the  arcade  of  a 
shop.  It  is  flanked  by  a  granite  column,  over  which 
rises  an  Ionic  pilaster,  the  whole  framed  in  the  wall. 
"  An  old  bakery,"  said  the  abbe,  "  before  Avhich  Ra- 
phael paused  many  a  time  :  it  was  there  that  the 
Fornarina  lived." 

As  we  began  to  ascend,  the  grass  became  more 
abundant  in  the  streets  and  the  houses  grew  less  fi'e- 
quent,  I  asked  whither  we  were  going,  and  was  told 
that  we  were  climbing  the  Janiculum,  the  Monte 
d'Oro  where  Janus  had  his  toAvn  of  Antipolis  in  front 
of  that  of  Saturn  ;  Avhere,  according  to  Titus  Livius, 
the  tomb  of  Numa  was  fomid ;  where  the  citadel  of 
Ancus  Martius  rose  ;  and  where,  according  to  the 
Christian  legend,  the  Apostle  Peter  was  crucified. 

Along  the  street  I  had  already  remarked  that  snuff- 
boxes were  in  hospitable  and  universal  use  among  the 
clergy,  and  that  in  this  respect  they  still  lingered  m 
the  habits  of  the  age  of  Fontenelle,  when  both  sexes 
carried  about  a  snuff-box  and  a  walking-stick.  The 
Romans  have  di'opped  the  stick ;  it  requires  some 


ST.  PETER  IN  MONTORIO.  17 

effort  to  carry  one  ;  but  the  monks  of  the  Montorio 
take  and  offer  about  two  pinches  a  minute  ;  it  is  the 
base  of  conversation.  A  veteran  snuff-taker,  Pius  IX. 
habitually  used  a  genuine  Capucin's  handkerchief,  a 
bit  of  cretonne  of  red  and  blue  check,  such  as  we 
hardly  ever  see  at  home  except  among  the  Lorraine 
farmers.  This  homely  rag  jars  with  the  gold  and 
purple  of  the  heir  of  the  emperors  of  Rome  :  don't 
you  think  that  such  a  sample  from  the  wardrobe  of  a 
sovereign  pontiff  reveals  the  conventual  simplicity  of 
the  monk  framed  in  the  splendors  of  the  church  ? 

As  we  were  aboiit  to  cross  the  threshold  of  a 
church,  the  abbe,  plucking  me  by  the  arm,  resumed: 
"Let  me  tell  you,  before  going  in,  that  Baccio  Pintelli 
of  Florence,  who  died  in  1480,  rebuilt,  at  the  expense 
of  Ferdinand  IV.  of  Spain,  the  church  of  St.  Peter  in 
Montorio  for  the  monks  of  the  Order  of  St.  Francis, 
to  whom  it  had  been  ceded."  We  cannot  but  admire 
there  one  of  the  good  works  of  Sebastian  del  Piombo, 
the  Flagellation  of  Christ.  The  work  is  supposed 
to  have  been  executed  after  a  cartoon  of  ]\Iichael 
Angelo's  ;  its  style  is  lofty  without  being  either  violent 
or  harsh  ;  the  painting,  of  a  very  deep  quality,  would 
be  more  easily  appreciated  if  the  small  chapel  which 
gives  it  shelter  were  less  sombre.  It  was  over  the 
main  altar  of  St.  Peter  in  jMontorio  that,  before  our  Ital- 
ian campaigns,  Raphael's  Transfiguration  was  to  be 
found — that  celebrated  example  of  the  third  manner 
of  the  master.     This  famous  canvas  was  sent  to  the 

2 


18  ROME. 

Louvre,  whence  it  was  restored  in  1854.  Since  then 
it  has  remained  in  the  Vatican.  In  the  sepulchral 
chapel  of  the  Del  Monte  family,  Ammanato  has  carved 
some  fine  figures,  among  others  that  of  Justice,  taken 
from  the  same  model  as  the  renowned  statue  of  G. 
della  Porta  on  the  tomb  of  Paul  III.  in  the  Vatican 
basilica. 

In  the  cloisters  is  a  small  round  temple,  surrounded 
by  sixteen  grey  marble  columns,  and  surmounted  by 
a  cupola.  Ferdinand  and  Isabella  had  it  erected  by 
Bramante  on  the  very  spot  where  St.  Peter  is  said  to 
have  been  crucified.  A  gift  of  alms  will  procure  you 
a  pinch  or  even  a  packet  of  the  dust  of  the  place.  I 
scandalized  my  companion  by  considering  this  little 
building  merely  in  the  light  of  a  fine  examjile  of  those 
correct  styles  that  the  Joseph  Prud'hommes  of  art 
have  consecrated.  Nothing  could  be  worse  adapted 
for  a  great  memorial,  or  so  ill  become  a  spot  where 
Nero  set  up  the  cross  of  the  first  of  the  popes,  as  this 
prototype  of  the  belvederes  which,  in  our  English 
gardens  under  Lewis  XVI.,  served  as  resting-places 
at  the  top  of  grassy  slopes  for  the  Aspasias  of  the  Di- 
rectory. 

To  describe  all  that  meets  the  eye  on  this  terrace, 
from  which  Montaigne  three  centuries  ago  surveyed 
a  noble  winter  prospect  (26th  January),  one  would 
have  to  introduce  into  the  description  a  summary  of 
Roman  history.  Rome  however  is  only  a  foreground 
of  the   picture  |  for  the  view  extends   towards    the 


SUNSET  FEOM  THE  JANICULUM.  19 

north  over  the  plains,  reaching  as  far  as  the  Apen- 
nines, whence  once  rushed  down  Equi,  kSabini,  Hernici. 
Towards  the  south-east  at  the  foot  of  the  Alban 
mountains,  it  embraces  those  plains  of  the  old  Latium 
which  open  out  by  the  country  of  the  Rutuli  on  the 
swamps  of  the  Volsci.  The  sun  ready  to  set  behind 
us  in  the  Tyrrhene  Sea,  inflamed  with  its  crepuscular 
purple  the  domes,  towers,  and  pinnacles,  the  fagades 
of  palaces  and  ruins,  as  well  as  the  volcanic  mounds 
scattered  at  the  foot  of  the  chains  and  over  the  pla- 
teaux ;  a  few  peaks  silvered  with  early  snow  crowned 
the  violet  Apennines  with  a  pyramid  of  rose-color, 
where  brighter  lines  marked  here  and  there  a  hamlet 
perched  on  high.  Between  these  two  extreme  points 
of  blue-tinged  mountains  the  city,  glowing  and  ruddy 
in  the  midst  of  the  bronze  zone  of  its  Byzantine  walls, 
lay  stretched  before  us,  a  mixture  of  verdure  and 
russet  outlines  5  and  the  country  crossed  by  aque- 
ducts, covered  with  ancient  villas,  and  pierced  by 
long  roads  of  old  reno^vn,  marked  out  and  lined  with 
tombs.  The  yellow  Tiber,  flavns  as  Horace  called  it, 
winds  at  our  feet  like  a  track  of  sand ;  approaching 
the  horizon,  it  melts,  on  one  side  in  the  azure  of  the 
sky,  on  the  other  in  the  flres  of  the  setting  sun. 

While  the  abbe  continued  to  point  out  each  monu- 
ment, each  site,  from  Mount  Soracte  to  Tivoli,  from 
the  mole  of  Hadrian  to  the  tomb  of  Csecilia  Metella, 
my  mind  pictured  each  object  in  turn.  To  the  right 
especially,  beyond  St.  Paul  and  the  Ostian  road,  to 


20  ROME. 

the  culminating  point  of  the  hill  of  Jupiter,  from  Alba 
Longa  and  the  distant  stretches  of  the  Appian  Way 
to  the  old  Latin  gate,  memorable  spots  occur  in  such 
numbers,  on  a  theatre  so  noble,  that  one  gazes  down 
dreamily  as  though  traversing  the  air  on  wings,  sur- 
veying the  scenes  of  the  legends  of  the  ages  ;  above 
all,  that  sanctuary — the  Forum  Eomanum,  whose 
ruins,  rising  to  the  left  of  the  Coliseum,  at  this  mo- 
ment glittered  in  a  burning  light.  Framing  panoplies 
of  ruins  and  little  domes  and  terraced  gardens — the 
famous  hills,  the  Coelian,  the  Palatine,  the  Capitoline, 
marked  the  confines  of  the  dale  of  Romulus  and  the 
swamps  of  the  Velabrum.  How  many  mighty  names, 
how  many  mighty  things  in  this  little  space  !  How 
many  kingdoms  in  miniature  destroyed  by  wars  of 
giants  I 


FOKUM  ROMANUM.  21 


CHAPTER    II. 

When  we  remember  what  this  bit  of  narrow  val- 
ley Avas,  how  the  interests  of  the  AA'orld  have  centered 
there,  the  voices  that  have  resounded  there,  the 
dramas  that  have  been  there  enacted ;  when  Ave  think 
that  from  the  almost  fabidous  time  of  the  alliance  of 
the  Sabines  with  the  hordes  of  Romulus  down  to  the 
last  Augustuli,  this  spot  was  the  very  brain  of  the 
immense  Roman  Empire,  avc  hardly  dare  to  tread  its 
soil,  so  profoundly  are  Ave  impressed  Avith  a  sense  of 
its  sanctity.  The  entire  history  of  a  people,  of  the 
most  renoAA'ned  of  all  peoples,  AAOrked  itself  out  on 
this  spot,  soul  and  sanctuary  of  Rome. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  seA^enth  century  the  Roman 
Forum  still  preserved  its  ancient  form  and  appearance 
more  or  less  intact,  but  from  that  time  each  suc- 
cessive war  and  iuA-asion,  earthquake  and  inundation 
contributed  toAvards  its  ruin,  until  it  Avas  finally  com- 
pletely buried  beneath  upAA-ards  of  thirty  feet  of 
debris.  From  the  middle  of  the  sixteenth  century  on, 
intermittent  attempts  Avere  made  at  excavations,  but 
these,  conducted  AAithout  system  or  perscA'crance,  only 
residted  in  leading  archa?ologists  astray,  and  giving 
rise  to  innumerable  controversies. 


22  ROME. 

People  seem  to  forget  that  in  so  narrow  a  space, 
each  period  from  Romulus  and  Tatius  to  the  Emperor 
Julian  must  have  pulled  down  to  build  up  ;  that  the 
Forum  in  the  time  of  Scipio  Avas  no  longer  like  the 
Forum  of  Tarquin  ;  that  the  first  Caesars  laid  low  the 
buildings  of  the  Republic ;  then  that  they  in  turn 
yielded  their  temples  and  basilicas  to  the  ambitious 
enterprises  of  the  Flavii,  the  Antonines,  and  their 
heirs.  How  many  monuments  must  have  succeeded 
one  another  on  the  Via  Sacra,  changed  names  and 
destinations  and  disappeared ;  from  the  Temple  of 
Venus-et-Roma  to  the  Tullian  prisons,  and  from  the 
ruins  of  Caligida's  palace  to  the  foundations  of  the 
fallen  Temple  of  Concord  !  Between  the  church  of 
San  Lorenzo  in  Miranda  encorbelled  in  the  Temple 
of  Faustina,  and  Sta.  Maria  Liberatrice  close  by  the 
old  domain  of  the  Vestals,  the  arch  of  Titus,  and  the 
Tabularium  of  Sulla  which  supports  on  the  Doric 
columns  engaged  in  its  Avails  the  palace  of  the  Capitol, 
there  is  a  long  half-hollowed  trapezium,*  the  most 
splendid  of  historical  sepultures,  on  which  one  might 
expatiate  for  ever. 

The  Temple  of  Saturn  is  separated  from  that  of 
Vespasian  by  a  branch  of  the  Via  Sacra,  which  was 
called  the  Cliviis  Cap'dol'mus,  or  slope  of  the  Capitol. 
Leaving  this   to   follow  a   sort  of  alley   encumbered 

*  The  forum  is  represented  in  every  existing  plan  as  a  trape- 
zium, whereas  it  is  a  perfect  parallelogram.  See  Ancient  Rome  in 
the  Ijifjht  of  Recent  Discoveries.     K.  Lanciani.     P.  76,  note. 


FORUM  ROMANUM.  23 

with  broken  marbles,  you  reach  the  Schola  Xaiitha. 
Here  are  the  lodges  {tabenue),  to  the  number  of  six, 
Avhich   served  as  bureaux  for  the  scribes,  the   archi- 
vists, the  prcecones  of  the    curule    gediles.       These 
vaulted  chambers  still   have  their  thresholds;    they 
continue   below  and   in   front  of  the   portico  of  the 
Twelve  Gods  as  far  as  the  foot  of  the   Tabularium. 
Pius  IX.  had  them  cleared  out  and  restored  in  1857. 
Let  us  now  cross,  parallel  to  the  Tabularium,  the 
base  of  the  Capitoline  iiitcnnonfinw,  by  directing-  our 
steps  along  the  side  of  the   Tullian  prison  and  the 
Gemoniffi,  which  have  given  way  to  the  slope  of  the 
Ara  Coeli.     We  shall  come  across,  between  the  arch 
of  Septimius    Severus   and  the    foundations   of  the 
portico  erected  in  676  of  Rome  by  Lutatius  Catulus, 
in  front  of  the  building  where  they  kept  the  tables  of 
bronze  (the  archives  of  the  Republic),  the  remains  of 
the  renowned  Temple  of  Concord,  used  as  a  military 
treasury,  and  restored,  it  is  said,  by  Tiberius.    Votive 
inscriptions   confirm   the   allusions  of  Plutarch,  Dion 
Cassius,  and  Festus  regarding  the  site  and  aspect  of 
this  edifice.     The  building  was  enormous  and  nearly 
square,  its  vast  portico  being  reached  by  steps   of 
marble,  of  which  numerous  fragments  still  remain. 

Facing  the  Forum,  between  it  and  the  portico  of 
the  Temple  of  Concord,  stood  the  rostra. 

The  tribune  was  long  confounded  with  the  Grajco- 
stasis,  where  from  the  time  of  Pyrrhus  foreign  ambas- 
sadors   were    quartered,  between   the   comitium,   of 


24  ROME. 

which  the  steps  are  still  to  be  recognized,  and  the 
foot  of  the  Temple  of  Concord,  almost  in  the  angle  of 
Severus's  arch.  There  still  remain  its  massive  sub- 
structions of  peperino  or  volcanic  rock  ten  metres 
long.  I  have  measured  them.  Close  by  is  the  office 
of  the  scribes  Avho  preserved  the  speeches,  officials 
who,  from  Tullius  Tyro,  Cicero's  freedman,  downwards, 
may  be  compared  to  our  short-hand  writers. 

It  was  at  the  entry  of  the  Forum  that  that  Piso 
lived  whom  Agrippina  accused  of  having  poisoned 
Germanicus,  and  it  was  there  that  he  was  mysteri- 
ously assassinated ;  Tacitus  insinuates  at  the  instiga- 
tion of  Tiberius,  who  might  have  been  compromised 
by  his  complicity.  What  Avondrous  events  have  been 
enacted  on  this  stage,  as  narrow  as  that  of  a  play- 
house, from  the  days  when  Brutus  displayed  there  the 
dagger  of  Lucretia,  and  Virginius  bought  in  the  shops 
to  the  north  of  the  Forum,  whose  site  is  still  marked, 
the  knife  which,  to  reach  the  decemvirs,  Avas  to  pass 
through  his  daughter's  heart,  down  to  the  memorable 
occasion  when  the  curia  was  burnt,  together  with  the 
body  of  Clodius  (700  a.u.c).  To  animate  it  all,  and 
to  bring  to  life  again  some  of  the  mightiest  shades  of 
the  past,  one  has  only  to  seat  himself  on  a  column 
and  fit  reminiscences  to  that  fallen  ornament. 

At  the  foot  of  the  Palatine,  on  the  Vicus  Tuscus 
and  even  along  the  Via  Sacra  itself  stood  rows  of 
shops,  whose  signs  engraved  on  squares  of  marble 
have  been  found.     I  have  seen  one,  belonging  to  one 


FOKUM  EOMANUM.  25 

of  the  jewellers  who  succeeded  each  other  there,  from 
the  time  when  Papirius  Cursor  distributed  the  buck- 
lers of  chased  gH»ld  and  the  magniticcnt  arms  of  the 
Samnites,  so  that — being  displayed  in  front  of  the 
shops — those  trophies  might  furnish  a  magnificent 
decoration  to  the  Forum.  The  custom  was  afterwards 
observed  by  the  ?ediles. 

In  whatever  direction  you  turn  you  come  upon 
some  fresh  memorial  of  the  past.  Wherever  the  eye 
rests  it  is  upon  some  new  historical  monument.  Be- 
tween the  Temple  of  Castor  and  the  Basilica  Jidia  is 
the  site  of  the  Curtian  pool  where  Curtius  sacrificed 
himself.  It  Avas  just  here  that  Galba  M-as  massacred 
by  his  furious  legionaries,  Avho  carried  off  the  bald 
head  of  the  emperor,  supporting  it  through  the  mouth. 
Raising  your  eyes  beyond  the  Forum,  with  your  back 
to  the  Palatine,  the  remains  of  the  ^Emilian  basilica 
are  seen  stretching  away  to  the  west  of  S.  Adriano. 
Near  the  gaol  of  Tidlius  is  the  church  of  St.  Luke 
and  St.  Martin  ;  between  it  and  St.  Cosmo  is  San  Lo 
renzo  in  Miranda,  Avhich  grasps  in  its  arms  the  tem- 
ple of  Antoninus  and  Faustina.  As  we  cross  the 
open  space  transversely  going  towards  the  arch  of 
Septimius  Severus,  we  follow  tlie  road  along  which 
Vitelhus  Avas  dragged,  down  to  tlie  narrow  staircase 
of  the  Gemonise  by  which  criminals  passed  out  from 
the  Mamertine  prison. 

The  Forum  Avith  its  frame  of  buildings,  from  the 
heights  of  the  Capitol  to  the  basilica  of  Constantine, 


26  KOME. 

was  assuredly  within  small  compass  the  most  imposing 
spot  in  the  universe :  no  wonder  that  the  restoration 
of  this  city  of  monuments,  perched  one  above  another 
under  the  sides  of  the  three  hills,  has  been  the  chosen 
historic  romance  of  all  architects.  It  is  certain  that 
this  multitude  of  temples,  basilicas,  and  porticos, 
stretching  against  the  blue  sky  their  white  and  rose- 
colored  profiles,  that  these  forests  of  columns  of  all 
shades,  standing  in  rows  from  the  Julian  basilica  to 
the  Temple  of  Jupiter  Capitolinus,  and  letting  the 
oblique  sun-rays  play  between  their  ruddy  shafts, 
that  these  deep  vaults,  this  network  of  aisles  and 
shining  architraves  outlined  against  the  chiaroscuro 
of  the  galleries,  must  indeed  have  dazzled  barbarian 
and  Gaul  alike  as  they  drew  near  the  Olympus  of  the 
conquering  divinities.  As  it  was  in  the  days  of  its 
glory  so,  I  repeat,  is  it  even  now — the  greatest  spot 
on  earth  :  overpowering  thought  that  engulfs  all  sense 
of  time  and  space  until  at  last  arousing  to  find  that 
it  is  nightfall,  you  turn  away  Avith  a  blue  veronica 
pressed  between  the  pages  of  your  note-book  and  a 
tiny  bit  of  marble  in  your  pocket. 

The  abbe  insisted  on  a  visit  to  St.  Paul  extra 
Muros.  It  is  oite  of  the  seven  Major  Basilicas. 
Our  friend  seemed  to  attach  to  this  jdurney  a  sort  of 
conventional  propriety,  in  which  it  would  be  unbe- 
coming to  fail.  One  day  as  he  returned  to  the  sub- 
ject before  a  number  of  persons,  I  took  it  into  my 
head  to  show  some  surprise  that  in  the   state   into 


BASILICAS.  27 

which  the  pontifical  finances  had  come  even  under  Leo 
XII.,  they  should  have  sacrificed  such  large  sums  to  re- 
build, far  from  any  inhabited  quarter,  a  church  that  was 
of  no  use  for  worship  and  very  burdensome  to  keep  up. 

No  one  answered  ;  there  was  on  all  sides  a  silence 
full  of  reproach  and  shame,  and  I  felt  that  I  had 
placed  myself  in  cpiarantine  as  infected  by  the  utili- 
tarian murrain. 

What  is,  precisely,  a  Roman  basilica  ? 

One  of  the  Athenian  archons,  Avho  bore  the  name 
of  liaachh<;  or  king,  administered  justice  under  a  por- 
tico, named  for  this  reason  basilica,  a  term  that  in 
other  parts  of  Greece  and  Asia  Avas  given  to  the 
royal  palaces.  Cato  the  Censor,  who  declaimed  much 
against  the  arts  and  customs  of  the  Greeks,  yet  bor- 
rowed from  them  their  hall  of  justice,  and  it  was  he 
who  about  a  hundred  and  ninety  years  before  our  era 
erected  in  Rome  the  first  basilica.  After  that  they 
multiplied. 

Thus  in  its  origin  the  basilica  is  a  civil  edifice ; 
under  the  emperors,  Avhen  the  magistrates  sat  by  ap- 
pointment from  the  sovereign,  this  description  of  their 
tribunals  corresponded  exactly  to  a  monarchic  institu- 
tion. But  the  Greek  language  was  then  in  favor,  the 
residences  themselves  of  sovereigns  are  equally  de- 
scribed as  basilicas ;  this  was  the  case  with  the  Regia 
or  basilica  of  the  Lateran,  which  bequeathed  its  name 
to  the  first  church  that,  in  this  imperial  residence, 
Constantine  had  had  built. 


28  ROME. 

Let  us  not  forget  that  the  edifices  so  called  were 
before  all  else  praetoria,  Avhere  they  decided  commer- 
cial cases,  and  disputes  among  dealers,  and  that  mer- 
chants also  had  the  right  to  assemble  there  to  discuss 
their  common  interests.  The  inscription  Exchange  and 
Tribunal  of  Commerce  furnishes  among  ourselves  the 
exact  definition  of  these  basilicas.  There  was  to  be 
found  there  a  large  hall  with  sometimes  two  or  three 
aisles.  Separated  from  the  body  of  the  building  by  a 
septum  or  barrier,  the  judges  ranged  themselves  on 
three  circular  sets  of  benches,  in  the  hemicycle  of 
the  principal  bay,  round  the  president  who  occupied 
the  centre  marked  by  a  stall  or  chair  of  honor  with  a 
high  back,  cathedra.  It  is  to  this  source  that  we 
trace  our  name  for  the  seat  of  the  bishop ;  the  Avord 
tribunal  also  signified  the  seat  belonging  to  a  magis- 
trate or  tribune.  A  portico  and  galleries  with  columns 
stood  in  front  of  and  around  the  basilica,  like  a 
private  forum  attached  to  some  judicial  establishment. 

A  building  of  this  kind  may  serve  many  purposes. 
As  there  was  nothing  sacred  about  it,  it  was  utilized 
for  a  place  of  assembly,  to  harangue  the  people, 
and  even  for  public  discourses.  It  was  thus  that  the 
Apostles  and  their  disciples  after  them,  expounded  the 
doctrines  of  Christ  in  the  basilicas  or  tribunals,  and 
it  often  happened  that  they  were  brought  there 
to  confess  at  the  judges'  bar  the  truths  delivered  by 
tliem  to  the  people.  Hence  the  name  of  Confession, 
which  is   still  preserved  in  the  old  churches  for  the 


BASILICAS.  29 

spot  where  in  the  corresponding  basilicas  the  accused 
appeared  to  dechire  his  faith.  It  was  there  that  the 
custom  continued  of  placing  the  high  altar,  pains  be- 
ing taken  to  make  its  base  the  exact  burying-place 
of  a  martyr,  so  that  his  relics-  might  still  continue  to 
bear  witness.  The  civil  basilicas  were  numerous ; 
they  reckoned  more  than  forty  of  them  when  Dio- 
cletian forbade  the  erection  of  more.  His  edict  is 
important ;  for  it  helps  us  to  understand  how  under 
the  successors  of  Constantine  so  many  churches  could 
take  the  name  of  basilica  and  really  fill  their  office. 

It  was  Theodosius  who  expanded  Christianity  into 
a  judiciary  institution,  and  constituted  it  a  state  re- 
ligion ;  in  his  reign  the  bishops  acquired  rights  of 
jurisdiction  that  Avere  speedily  extended  from  eccle- 
siastics to  the  whole  body  of  the  faithful.  In  408, 
under  Honorius,  a  law  excludes  from  the  army  as  well 
as  from  public  office  all  pagans  and  heretics ;  in  the 
same  year,  after  the  assassination  of  Stilicho,  another 
law  extends  the  jurisdiction  of  the  bishops ;  six  days 
after,  a  third  law  enjoins  the  demolition  of  the  tem- 
ples, and  orders  the  substitution  of  ecclesiastical  action 
for  that  of  the  magistrates ;  iinally,  the  episcopal  ju- 
risdiction is  applied  to  nearly  all  civil  affairs,  and  freed 
from  all  liability  to  an  appeal ;  the  bishops  had  be- 
come praetorian  prefects.  After  the  completion  of 
these  arrangements,  which  have  been  transmitted  to 
us  in  the  Codes  of  Theodosius  and  Justinian,  the 
bishops,  and  under  them  the  clerks  who  administered 


30  EOME. 

quarters  or  districts,  pcassed  their  days  in  deciding 
suits,  to  the  detriment  of  the  religious  instruction  of 
the  faithfuL  Far  from  being  flattered  at  this  aug- 
mentation of  power,  St.  Augustin  deplores  a  pom- 
pous drudgery  "  which,  devouring  hours  claimed  by 
holy  things,  constrains  him  to  live  amid  the  hateful 
tumult  of  sophistry." 

These  sacerdotal  magistrates  then  occupied  most 
of  the  old  basilicas ;  the  clergy  appropriated  some,  of 
which  they  made  churches,  Avhile  many  of  them  must 
have  continued  to  serve  for  tribunals.  Hence  the 
large  number  of  temples  Avhich  have  claimed  as  a 
mark  of  honor  and  precedence  the  title  of  basilicas, 
limited  in  our  days — as  well  as  the  privileges,  indul- 
gences, and  pontifical  favors  by  which  their  pre-emi- 
nence is  supported — to  thirteen  churches  which  answer 
to  the  number  of  the  Apostles,  reckoning  among  them 
St.  Matthias  who  was  substituted  for  Judas,  and  St. 
Paul  who  was  admitted  into  the  apostolic  college  after 
his  conversion. 

But  among  these  thirteen  edifices  we  must  distin- 
guish at  first  seven  primitive  or  Constantinian  basil- 
icas, which  are  or  rather  were — St.  John  Lateran, 
St.  Peter  of  the  Vatican,  St.  Paid  extra  Muros,  St. 
Cross  in  Jerusalem,  St.  Lawrence  extra  Muros,  St. 
Agnes  beyond  the  Nomentane  Gate,  and  Saints  Mar- 
cellinus  and  Peter  on  the  Via  Labicana. 

St.  Agnes  and  Saints  ]\Iarcellinus  and  Peter  hav- 
ing been  replaced  by  Sta.   Maria  Maggiore  and  St. 


BASILICAS.  31 

Sebastian,  these  two  churches  Avith  the  five  others 
compose  the  seven  Major  Basilicas  of  Rome.  "  They 
are  seven  in  number,"  says  a  historian,  "  to  corres- 
pond to  the  seven  hills,  their  altars  being  the  seven 
fortified  mounts  of  the  church."  Possibly  :  but  I 
prefer  the  explanation  of  Panvinio,  who,  if  I  am  not 
mistaken,  supposes  the  seven  basilicas  to  have  been 
instituted  to  represent  the  seven  churches  of  the 
Apocalypse,  namely,  Ephesus,  Smyrna,  Pergamos, 
Thyatira,  Sardis,  Philadelphia,  Laodicea. 

The  Minor  Basilicas — Santa  Maria  in  Trastevere, 
San  Lorenzo  in  Damaso,  Sta.  Maria  in  Cosmedin, 
Santi  Apostoli,  San  Pietro  in  Vincoli  and  Sta.  Maria 
in  Monte  Santo,  are  only  basilicas  by  assimilation ; 
they  have  been  ennobled. 

That  is  not  all :  among  the  seven  major  basilicas 
there  are,  classed  apart  and  occupying  a  distinct  rank. 
Five  Patriarchal  Basilicas,  whose  significance  is  more 
striking.  Onofrio  Panvinio  will  assist  us  to  discover 
it :  '^  It  is  the  peculiar  prerogative  of  the  chief  of  the 
universal  church  to  have,  beside  the  pontifical  see, 
four  other  churches  where  he  is  accustomed  to  offi- 
ciate as  if  he  were  cardinal  bishop  of  each  of  them. 
He  there  exercises  full  pontifical  jurisdiction  on  the 
titular  festivals  of  these  churches,  as  in  cathedrals 
which  are  peculiarly  his  own." 

But  why  these  five  cathedrals  ?  To  establish  the 
sovereignty  of  the  Pontifex  Maximus  of  Rome  over 
all  the  bishoprics   in   the  world,  represented   by  the 


32  EOME. 

great  patriarchates  which  once  formed  distinct 
churches.  St.  Lawrence  extra  Muros  is  the  church 
of  the  patriarchate  of  Jerusalem,  Sta.  Maria  Mag- 
giore  represents  the  church  of  Antioch,  St.  Paid  that 
of  Alexandria,  St.  Peter  of  the  Vatican,  that  of  Con- 
stantinople. 

The  last  three  have  moreover  the  prerogative  of 
possessing  the  Holy  Door.  This  is  an  entry  to  the 
church  which  is  always  walled  up  except  during  jubi- 
lees, at  the  inauguration  of  Avhich  it  is  opened  by  the 
Sovereign-Pontiff,  who  strikes  it  Avith  a  golden  ham- 
mer. This  privilege  of  the  Porta  Santa,  the  three 
churches  I  have  named  have  the  distinction  of  shar- 
ing with  St.  John  Lateran,  keystone  of  the  ecclesias- 
tical edifice,  first  Christian  basilica  of  imperial  foun- 
dation, queen  of  Roman  cathedrals,  seat  of  the  patri- 
archate of  the  west  and  of  the  world. 

The  history  of  this  venerable  title  of  nobility  ex- 
plains how  becoming  it  was  to  go  to  salute  the  basilica 
of  St.  Paul/?<oW  le  luura.  Still,  a  son  of  the  north, 
something  of  an  archaeologist  and  always  an  arguer, 
will  have  some  trouble  in  preventing  himself  from 
regretting,  as  he  makes  his  way  into  St.  Paul's,  that 
the  piety  of  the  faithful  for  sacred  traditions  should 
have  led  them  to  restore  what  a  catastrophe  had  laid 
in  ruins.  The  new  church  is  splendid ;  the  most  ex- 
pensive materials  are  piled  one  upon  the  other  ;  it 
costs  Christendom  millions ;  and  yet  all  this  expense 
and  effort  only  succeeds  in  mournfully  recalling  the 


The  Basilica  of  S.  Paolo  Extra  Mures 


R.  PAOLO  EXTRA  MUROS.  33 

basilica  founded  by  Constantine  on  tlie  tomb  of  St. 
I^iul,  rebuilt  Avith  great  splendor  from  386  to  392  by 
the  Emperors  Valentinian,  Theodosius,  Arcadius,  and 
HonoriuSj  preserved  for  fifteen  centuries,  and  burnt 
in  1823,  by  some  clumsy  plumbers. 

It  was  restored  on  the  same  plan  and  in  the  same 
spot,  at  the  angle  of  the  hill  that  Avas  cut  away  in 
order  to  free  the  monument  of  the  Apostle  Paul  from 
its  catacomb.  As  we  pace  these  five  aisles,  with  their 
superb  colonnades,  reflected  as  in  a  glass  in  the  pol- 
ished paving  of  marble  laid  out  in  arabesques,  can  we 
ever  succeed  in  forgetting  the  mosaics  of  Nicholas 
III.,  the  bronze  gates  that  the  consul  Castelli  had 
brought  from  Byzantium,  the  eighty  giant  columns 
of  Paros,  of  violet  breccia,  and  pentelica,  spoils  of 
the  -^milian  basilica,  which  supported  the  edifice  on 
a  forest  of  gems  ;  and  those  paintings  of  the  year 
1000,  and  the  pavement  of  Alexandrian  mosaic  and 
antique  inscriptions,  and  the  panels  fitted  to  the  frieze 
where  from  age  to  age  they  represented  the  reigning 
popes,  from  St.  Sylvester  to  Pius  VII.,  and  the  pillars 
of  granite  and  cipolino  which  divided  the  transept  into 
two  aisles,  and  so  many  other  splendors  of  which  it 
is  best  to  be  silent,  since  they  "will  never  be  seen 
more  !  This  chief  among  Catholic  basilicas  measured 
nearly  four  hundred  feet  long,  and  the  first  Christian 
ages  told  their  story  in  it. 

When  the  Ostian  basilica  M'as  destroyed,  Pius  VII. 
was  dying ;  they  contrived  to  hide  the  disaster  from 

3 


34  KOME. 

his  knowledge.  Leo  XII.  ordered  the  reconstruction 
of  St.  Paul's  on  the  same  scale,  copying  the  lost 
basilica  from  memory.  The  whole  world  joined  in  the 
work.  Schismatical  Russia  offered  the  gift  of  an 
altar  of  malachite  ;  Mahomet  brought  as  a  tribute  to 
the  sanctuary  of  Christ  four  columns  of  oriental  ala- 
baster, presented  by  the  Sultan ;  gold,  silver,  and 
jewels  flowed  in  from  every  side.  Hence  the  por- 
ticos of  veined  Greek  marble,  the  pilasters  taken 
from  the  quartz  of  the  Simplon,  the  Avails  of  Carrara, 
framed  with  gems  of  varied  hues  ;  the  entablature  of 
Paros  with  its  violet  frieze  ;  the  enormous  capitals,  so 
lavish  in  size,  so  delicate  in  execution.  Wondrous 
spectacle,  at  first  sight  especially,  that  vast  monu- 
ment so  ancient  and  so  new,  unique  in  our  bourgeois 
age,  a  colossal  reliquary  executed  as  if  it  were  a 
miniature,  and  revealed  in  all  its  dazzling  freshness. 

But  you  do  not  lose  yourself  there,  as  in  the  old 
edifices  of  Ravenna,  in  a  dream  of  wondering  and 
confiding  admiration.  The  moment  you  pass  to  an- 
alysis, the  poverty  of  modern  art  is  disclosed  to  such 
a  degree,  that  to  restore  to  this  noble  shrine  some- 
thing of  its  soul  and  the  veneration  that  it  ought  to 
inspire,  you  apply  yourself  to  the  search  for  any 
smallest  vestiges  of  the  primitive  basilica  that  may 
have  escaped  from  the  disaster  of  1823.  This  exami- 
nation results  in  a  few  consoling  discoveries. 

The  mosaics  of  the  apse,  or  tribune,  work  of  the 
thirteenth  century  representing  Christ  with  the  Apos- 


S.  PAOLO  EXTRA  MUROS.  35 

ties,  have  been  restored  but  too  much  retouched  ;  the 
hands  are  mannered,  and  the  Christ  has  been  en- 
dowed with  a  feminine  adolescence  that  is  a  Httle  ri- 
diculous. On  the  arch  of  Galla  Placidia,  which  divides 
the  nave  from  the  transept  and  which  has  retained 
the  name  of  the  daughter  of  TheodosiuSj  a  mosaic  of 
the  sixth  century,  Jesus  and  the  Four-and-twentj 
Elders  of  the  Apocalypse,  might  have  been  preserved 
more  in  its  integrity.  It  belongs  to  a  rather  savage 
state  of  art,  and  is  ruder  than  the  paintings  of  the 
same  period  that  are  to  be  seen  at  Ravenna.  Rome 
then  became  provincial,  and  ceased  to  attract  good 
artists;  the  capital  was  elsewhere.  An  object  per- 
fectly preserved  is  the  paschal  candelabrum  of  white 
marble,  twelve  feet  high.  This  column,  on  which, 
among  garlands  of  fruit  and  symbolical  animals,  move 
a  legion  of  tiny  figures  representing  scenes  from  the 
Passion,  is  a  marvellous  work  of  the  ninth  century. 
The  Christ  upon  the  Cross  is  there  represented 
clothed,  which  is  not  a  little  uncommon.  They  have 
also  preserved  the  old  altar  executed  in  the  thirteenth 
century  by  Arnolfo  di  Cambio,  the  most  illustrious  of 
the  pupils  of  Nicholas  of  Pisa.  Under  the  dome  of 
its  canopy  flutter  pretty  seraphim,  and  on  fine 
mosaics  sport  diminutive  monks  of  felicitous  design, 
accompanying  exquisite  little  figures  of  Adam  and 
Eve,  Cain  and  Abel.  Unfortunately,  in  order  to 
make  use  of  four  shafts  of  oriental  alabaster,  the 
whole    is    overweighted  with   a    heavy   baldacchino, 


36  EOME. 

which  swallows  up  the  pinnacles  of  the  canopy  and 
intercepts  the  great  mosaic. 

At  the  end  of  the  tribune  the  pontifical  seat  is  in 
deplorable  style  and  of  a  preposterous  richness ;  a 
large  and  stupid  picture  surmounts  it — the  Apothe- 
osis of  St.  Paul,  by  Camaccini.  They  were  bent  on 
restoring  the  medallions  of  the  various  popes  all  along 
the  friezes,  but  most  of  the  heads  are  purely  imagin- 
ary— an  unpardonable  piece  of  folly.  The  directors 
of  the  work  did  not  take  the  trouble  to  make  the 
necessary  inquiries  so  as  to  procure  the  real  likenesses 
of  the  sovereign-pontiffs ;  you  only  find  those  which 
everybody  knows  ;  the  others  imply  in  their  invent- 
ors very  little  understanding  of  physiognomy  as  con- 
sidered in  relation  to  character. 

At  St.  Paul  extra  Muros  is  preserved  the  famous 
crucifix  which  spoke  to  St.  Bridget ;  it  is  by  that  most 
mystic  of  Giotto's  pupils,  the  Roman  Cavallini,  a  holy 
character  whose  works  used  to  impress  people's  feel- 
ings. On  one  of  the  walls  of  the  transept  they  have 
hung  a  copy  of  one  of  Raphael's  great  compositions : 
it  is  frightful.  I  once  happened  to  encounter  there 
King  Ludwig  of  Bavaria,  whom  I  had  previously 
honored  as  a  serious  amateur  on  account  of  the  art 
institutions  he  founded  at  Mmiich.  This  illusion 
however  was  destroyed  by  his  asking  in  my  presence 
if  this  feeble  and  rose-colored  imitation  were  not  an 
original  Raphael. 

Notwithstanding  all  these  imperfections,  St.  Paul's 


S.  PAOLO  ALLE  TRE  FO>'TANE.  37 

will  continue  to  be  reckoned  among  the  important 
monuments  of  Rome  ;  its  richness  and  splendor,  and 
certain  details  which  have  survived,  making  the  build- 
ing still  interesting.  But  even  if  the  church  no 
longer  existed,  it  would  still  be  necessary  to  go  there 
to  visit  the  cloister,  one  of  the  two  finest  Avorks  of  the 
kind  that  the  thirteenth  century  has  bequeathed  to  us. 
The  other  is  the  cloister  of  St.  John  Lateran,  which 
this  recalls  very  closely. 

We  must  not  neglect,  in  passing  through  the  ves- 
tibule of  the  cloister,  some  frescoes  of  the  tAvelfth  cen- 
tury, representing  the  Saviour  surrounded  by  martyrs 
spaced  off  by  palm  trees.  It  is  certainly  somewhat 
rude,  but  paintings  of  this  date  are  not  numerous. 
In  this  the  artist,  drawing  his  inspiration  from  an- 
cient mosaics,  has  avoided  the  routine  immobility  of 
the  Byzantine  workers.  Tolerably  near,  on  the  scene 
of  the  slaughter  of  the  soldier  martyrs  of  the  tribune 
Zeno  who  shared  their  doom,  stands  the  church  of 
Sta.  Maria  Scala  Cadi,  where  St.  Bernard  celebrated 
mass,  and  where  in  sacrificing  he  had  the  vision  of  a 
ladder  by  which  legions  of  seraphim  ascended  to 
heaven.  A  little  further  off  is  St.  Paul  of  the  Three 
Fountains,  on  the  very  spot  where  the  Apostle's  head 
Avas  cut  off.  His  head  made  three  bounds,  the  legend 
says,  and  from  the  points  that  it  touched  there  gushed 
up  three  living  jets  ;  they  are  inclosed  by  the  oratory, 
and  pilgrims  quench  their  thirst  there.  Another 
chapel  in  the  plain  marks  the  spot  Avhere  St.  Paul 


38  ROME. 

and  8t.  Peter  embraced  at  the  crossing  of  the  ways 
as  they  separated  to  go  to  their  respective  martyi^ 
doms,  the  one  on  this  hill,  the  other  on  the  edge  of 
the  Tiber.  Farther  on,  before  passing  the  double- 
crenellated  gates  of  the  road  to  Ostia  attached  to  the 
old  walls  of  Rome,  you  skirt  on  your  left  the  pyramid 
of  that  Cains  Cestius,  the  contemporary  of  Agrippa, 
who  presided  with  six  other  septemvirs  over  the 
sacred  banquets  of  the  lectisternium.  His  tomb  is 
just  one-fourth  the  height  of  the  great  pyramid ;  but 
the  triangular  cone  of  Cestius  is  faced  with  plaques  of 
white  marble  a  foot  thick.  This  pyramid,  flanked 
by  two  fluted  columns,  shaded  by  some  cypresses  that 
connect  it  with  the  battlements  of  the  postern,  the 
whole  inclosed  in  a  recess  of  the  waUs,  makes  a  pict- 
ure charming  in  style  and  full  of  warm  color.  It 
was  here  that  they  found  the  gigantic  foot  of  bronze 
to  be  seen  in  the  Capital ;  it  belonged,  they  say,  to 
a  colossal  statue  of  the  septemvir. 

Farther  on  you  leave  to  the  left  the  artificial 
mound  of  ]\Ionte-Testaccio,  formed  in  the  course  of 
years  by  piles  of  those  eartheuAvare  vessels,  in  which 
the  peasants  brought  most  of  their  wares  to  the 
great  market  of  Rome,  and  whose  fragments  they 
threw  away  in  this  common  place  of  deposit  estab- 
lished behind  the  Emporium,  from  which  they  have 
recently  cleared  away  the  debris.  Almost  everything 
unloaded  there,  even  dried  vegetables,  was  trans- 
ported in  clay  vessels,  and  not  as  in  our  time  in  tilted 


PONS  SUBLICIUS.  39 

carts,  baskets,  sacks,  or  chests.  These  worthless  crocks 
once  emptied  were  tossed  away,  and  this  explains, 
what  was  for  long  so  enigmatical,  the  existence  of  the 
enormous  cwnuhis.  We  then  come  to  the  Marmo- 
rata,  a  store  of  the  marbles  of  Grreece  and  Italy ;  they 
have  now  exhumed,  for  the  purpose  of  making  use  of 
them,  blocks  that  have  been  lying  there  these  fifteen 
centuries,  and  whose  existence  has  been  known  ever 
since  the  time  of  Sixtus  V.  Hence  Ave  pass  to  the 
foot  of  the  convent  of  Sta.  Sabina,  Avhose  bells  sound 
on  the  Aventine,  and  Avhich  is  associated  with  St. 
Dominic  and  Father  Lacordaire  ;  famous  names  that 
open  and  close  the  annals  of  the  order  of  preaching 
friars.  In  front,  beyond  the  Tiber,  is  the  hospital  of 
St.  Michael,  where  they  have  a  school  of  arts  and 
trades  for  orphans.  Finally,  at  the  extremity  of  this 
escarped  face  of  the  Aventine  covered  Avith  shrubs 
and  brambles,  you  gradually  see  the  city  encircle  the 
stream,  behind  the  remains  of  the  Pons  Sublicius 
which  Ancus  Marcius  placed  on  wooden  joists,  as  its 
name  indicates,  and  Avhich  Avas  rebuilt  by  the  censor 
^milius  Lepidus  in  the  reign  of  the  second  of  the 
Csesars.  This  was  the  bridge  that  Horatius  Codes 
defended  ;  it  is  from  this  primitiA^e  monument,  Avhose 
construction,  preservation,  and  maintenance  was  con- 
fided to  the  college  of  priests,  that  our  AA'ord  pontiff 
comes.* 

The    FlaAian   Amphitheatre  has    been    so    highly 

*  Pontifex — pons,  pontis,  a  bridge  ;  facere,  to  make.    "  There  are 


40  KOME. 

appreciated  that  the  Popes,  proud  of  the  solicitude 
with  Avhich  all  Rome  regards  it,  have  been  at  great 
pains  and  expense  to  restore  it.  We  may  conceive 
then  of  the  effect  produced  some  years  ago  by  one  of 
our  French  bishops,  who,  when  preaching  in  the 
pidpit  of  the  Coliseum,  ventured  to  exclaim,  "  What, 
ruins  of  abomination,  relics  of  impurity,  you  still 
stand  !  O  shame,  that  Christians  should  endure  the 
sight  of  these  infamous  walls  !  That  they  should  not 
scatter  the  stones  of  this  Babel,  heaped  up  by  the 
imjjious  pride  of  the  enemies  of  the  faith  !..,." 
Here  were  eloquent  emotions  to  convince  a  Clenseric 
or  an  Attila ;  but  the  prelates  of  Rome  have  a  less 
primitive  zeal.  Whence  it  foUoAvs  that  in  condemning, 
by  this  appeal  for  the  destruction  of  the  Coliseum,  so 
many  pontiffs  Avho  had  been  the  religious  preservers 
of  its  antique  splendors,  Monseigneur  just  a  little 
compromised  his  country.  "  At  the  bottom  of  your 
hearts,"  an  official  remarked  to  me  on  this  subject, 
"  you  are  the  descendants  of  the  Gauls  who  devast- 
ated Italy."     The  quantity  of  shrubs,  of  pellitory,  of 

but  two  accounts  of  the  name  Pontiiices  and  botli  very  uncertain ; 
cither  from  pons  and  facere,  because  they  first  built  the  Sublician 
bridge  in  Rome  and  had  the  care  of  its  repair,  or  from  posse  and 
facere,  where  facere  must  be  interpreted  to  signify  the  same  as 
offerre  and  sacrijicare." — Kennett's  Antiquities  of  Rome. 

Plutarch  in  his  "  Nnma"  says  that  most  writers  assign  the  first 
of  these  two  derivations  to  Pontifex,  and  calls  it  a  "ridiculous 
reason,"  pointing  out  that  while  the  office  existed  in  the  time  of 
Numa  it  is  very  doubtful  if  the  bridge  did. 


THE  COLISEUM.  41 

saxifrage,  that  the  Coliseum  nurtures  is  even  less 
surprising  than  the  rarity  of  the  species.  Whether 
it  is  that  this  vast  mass  raised  high  in  the  air 
intercepts  wandering  germs  in  their  flight,  or  that 
the  nature  of  the  artificial  soil  or  the  composition 
of  the  cements  that  bind  the  stones  has  been  favorable 
to  exotic  growths,  it  is  certain  that  the  botanists 
have  collected  a  considerable  herbarium  of  specimens 
found  in  no  other  place  under  the  Roman  sky.  This 
mountain  of  the  Flavii  has  its  own  flora,  like  Hymet- 
tus  or  Hybla.* 

Just  at  first,  however,  you  pay  no  attention  to  these 
details  so  close  at  hand.  With  that  instinctive  reach- 
ing after  the  infinite,  the  eye  darts  first  of  all  to  the 
farthest  point  of  the  horizon  that  the  soul  would  fain 
pass.  It  is  not  a  landscape,  a  city,  or  simple  bird's- 
eye  view  that  is  seen  from  the  siimmit  of  the  precipi- 
tous waUs  of  this  crater,  but  the  unnumbered  illus- 
trations of  the  greatest  book  of  history,  a  spectacle 
that  you  regard  with  the  sensations  of  one  who 
dreams  a  dream  peopled  by  appariti(ins. 

Silence,  which  often  makes  an  impression  Avithout 
the  spirit  being  conscious  of  it,  perhaps  increased 
this  illusion,  and  so  Avhen  a  sudden  noise  aroused  us 
it  was  Avith  the  sensation  of  being  roughly  aAvakened 
from  sleep.     From  the  bottom  of  this   crucible   for 

*  As  many  as  four  hundred  and  twenty  species  of  plants  were 
formerly  found  in  the  Coliseum,  but  the  walls  were  scraped  clean 
in  1871,  for  fear  that  their  growth  might  injure  the  building. 


42  KOME. 

fusing  stars  in,  issued  confused  strains  of  church 
music ;  our  eyes  attracted  to  the  bottom  of  the  abyss 
distinguished  a  microscopic  procession  of  penitents 
enveloped  in  their  sheets,  taper  in  hand  and  banner 
at  the  head,  who,  followed  by  peasants  and  shepherds, 
chanted  the  office  of  Via  Crucis  before  the  fourteen 
chapels  stationed  round  the  arena.*  From  these 
depths  up  to  the  purple  of  the  west  Avhere  the  solar 
ball  was  sinking,  we  measured  strange  distances, 
marvellous  gradations  of  light  and  color. 

Speechless,  awe-struck,  we  gazed  and  gazed )  and 
as  the  night  fell  still  we  gazed. 


*  Removed  in  1874  to  facilitate  further  excavations. 


STREET  SCENES.  43 


CHAPTER    III. 

At  Rome  the  multiplicity  of  things  to  see  keeps  you 
on  the  trot  more  than  half  the  time.  But  you  take 
this  duty  patiently,  because  the  streets  change  in 
physiognomy  according  to  the  quarter,  and  because 
across  the  pavement  there  flows  a  tide  of  common 
people,  simple  in  their  manners,  and  bringing  Avith 
them  into  the  full  light  of  day,  besides  their  porrin- 
gers and  chafing-dishes,  their  household  habits,  and 
sometimes  the  practice  of  their  trade  as  well,  all  un- 
disturbed by  prohibitive  regulations. 

Along  those  monastic  streets  where  the  grass  grows, 
as,  for  instance,  that  leading  from  kSanta  Maria  Mag- 
giore  to  the  Lateran,  amusing  processions  move  noise- 
lessly, together  with  the  few  and  discreet  passers-by. 
The  scholars  of  seminaries  and  colleges,  hailing  from 
the  live  parts  of  the  globe,  dressed  up  like  little  abbes 
in  colors  varying  according  to  their  nationality,  with 
voluminous  shovel  hats,  thin  bodies,  and  childish 
faces,  furnish  a  diverting  sight.  The  Germans  Avear 
red  cassocks,  the  English  violet ;  Avhile  tlie  Avhite 
frock  of  the  little  Americans  contrasts  Avith  the  broAvn 
faces  of  yomig  negroes,  and  red  skins  brightened  by 
the  West  Indian  sun. 


44  ROME. 

On  the  Pincian  every  morning  appointments  are 
made  for  talking  politics  between  heterogeneous  and 
circumspect-looking  individuals  whom  you  would  take 
for  retired  clerks  or  merchants,  were  it  not  for  their 
clerical  dress,  which  savors  of  the  ancient  regime  and 
suggests  old-fashioned  comedy  rather  than  the  church. 
With  a  yellowish  vmibrella  under  the  arm  and  a  snuff- 
box in  the  hand,  these  prelates  have  the  air  of  honest 
shopkeepers  of  a  former  day. 

In  consequence  of  some  maternal  vow  one  used  to 
see  Carmelites,  Franciscans,  Carthusians,  from  eight 
to  ten  months  old  at  their  nurse's  breasts,  a  custom 
that  Avas  long  kept  up  in  the  Kingdom  of  Xaples. 
DoAvn  to  Leo  XII.  and  Gregory  XVI.,  who  put  an 
end  to  another  abuse,  the  clerks  of  solicitors  and 
notaries,  as  well  as  a  host  of  officials  belonging  to  the 
administration,  arrogated  to  themselves  the  privilege 
of  wearing  the  cassock,  while  still  holding  to  the  mode 
of  life,  and  the  behavior  of  the  young  men  of  the  day. 
Hence  foreigners  were  frequently  scandalized,  attrib- 
uting to  the  clergy  the  follies  and  misdeeds  of  the 
lawyers'  clerks.  The  cassock  was  with  them  what 
with  us  the  administrative  frock  and  military  uniform 
are — the  dress  of  those  w^ho  hold  some  position  in  the 
state. 

Many  monks  and  nuns  and  a  certain  quantity  of 
soldiers  contribute  to  g\^  e  variety  to  the  look  of  the 
streets,  setting  off  somewhat  the  raggedness  of  the 
Trastevere  or  of  the  Suburra.     Popular  costumes  no 


GUIDO'S  AURORA.  45 

longer  exist  at  Rome,  but  a  few  still  come  from  the 
comitry.  Sometimes  when  the  head  of  a  house  has 
to  come  to  the  great  city  on  business  the  whole 
family  will  accompany  him,  decked  out  in  their  gay 
costumes  and  provided,  perhaps,  with  some  gewgaws 
to  sell,  some  couplets  to  sing,  or  a  curiosity  to  ex- 
hibit. The  principal  business  concluded  or  the  market 
closed,  these  good  folk  stay  just  where  they  have 
alighted,  at  the  piazza  Montanara,  in  the  quarter  of 
the  Regola,  in  the  environs  of  the  Farnese  Palace, 
towards  the  Ponte  Sisto,  or  at  the  corner  of  the  Quat- 
tro  Capi  bridge,  waiting  for  the  hour  of  return  to  the 
mountains,  and  munching  morsels  of  bread.  Seated 
on  a  curb-stone,  or  gathered  in  a  close  group,  a  whole 
rural  household  will  be  seen  installed  as  if  in  their  own 
quarters,  the  youngsters  sporting  round  the  maternal 
skirts,  and  the  contadina  suckling  the  youngest  Avhile 
she  awaits  her  lord.  These  are  the  sights  of  the 
street ;  they  afford  much  entertainment  as  one  hur- 
ries from  church  to  church,  or  from  one  gallery  to 
another. 

Warned  against  the  classic  seductions  of  Guido  no 
less  than  against  those  of  Domenico  Zampieri,  I  still 
felt  as  I  looked  at  the  original  of  the  Aurora — too 
chilled  by  the  engraver  Morghen — the  sensation  that 
is  produced  by  a  work  poetically  treated  and  indebted 
for  a  happy  effect  to  its  free  and  gorgeous  coloring. 
Preceded  by  a  Genius  who  bears  in  the  air  a  torch, 
Apollo  on  his  car  advances  in  flame  through  the  sky 


46  KOME. 

to  commence  his  day.  He  is  accompanied  by  Aurora, 
and  surrounded  by  the  Hours,  who  dance  about  him. 
These  have  been  nourished  without  any  thought  of 
economy,  and  are  perhaps  a  little  too  plump.  At  the 
bottom  of  the  picture  lies  the  distant  earth,  the  sea 
and  its  shores,  still  unwarmed  by  the  freshness  of  the 
dawn.  The  composition  is  harmonious,  the  painting 
bright  and  tranquil,  the  draperies  studied,  and  the 
poses  gracefid.  It  is  the  attractive  masterpiece  of  an 
artist  usually  cold,  of  Avhom  we  shall  find  in  the  Bar- 
berini  collection  the  best  or  at  any  rate  the  most 
agreeable  portrait. 

As  to  the  Fall,  by  Domenichino,  it  is  a  sketch  of 
Breughel  de  Velours  enlarged  by  a  Eoman  from 
Bologna  5  the  graces  of  the  subject  humanize  the 
magisterial  cleverness  of  the  painter.  Eve  pluck- 
ing the  apple,  Adam  who  receives  it  stooping,  are  at- 
tractive figures ;  the  menagerie  distributed  about  in 
an  Eden  inspired  from  the  Roman  Campagna  gives 
animation  to  a  scene  of  rich  fancy.  Built  for  Scipio 
Borghese,  the  Rospigliosi  Palace  Avas  at  one  time  the 
property  of  Mazarin.  After  the  death  of  the  cardinal 
minister  it  became  the  residence  of  the  French  Em- 
bassy, and  in  ITO-t  passed  into  the  hands  of  the  Ros- 
pigliosi family.  Let  us  now  return  to  the  street  of 
the  Quattro  Fontane. 

The  vast  Barberini  Palace,  at  which  three  genera- 
tions of  architects  worked,  Charles  Maderno,  Borro- 
mini,  and   Bernini,   rises  above  those  hilly  gardens 


THE  BARBERINI  PALACE.  47 

whose  lofty  trees  have   seen  pass  beneath  them  the 
entire  generation  of  the  nephews  of  Urban  VIII. 

The  present  masters  of  the  Barberini  Palace  at  one 
time  gave  up  the  ground-floor  to  our  troops.  Singular 
effect  of  the  courteous  wars  of  our  time,  a  Roman 
prince  has  his  dwelling  over  the  quarters  of  some 
French  cavalry  |  they  sound  the  morning  drum  under 
his  windows,  he  might  suppose  himself  a  colonel  of 
horse.  For  the  rest,  as  soon  as  you  mount  the  stair- 
case on  the  right,  by  Borromini,  copied  from  Bra- 
mante,  who  took  his  model  from  Nicolo  of  Pisa ;  or 
the  staircase  on  the  left,  by  Bernini,  you  have  crossed 
the  frontier.  Rome  dechires  herself  in  the  pecidiar 
characteristics  of  her  patrician  dwellings.  The  great 
hall  whicli  you  approach  by  two  staircases  of  honor, 
has  on  its  ceiling  an  immense  production  by  Peter  of 
Cortona,  the  Triumph  of  Glory,  capo  (Vopera  as  far  as 
knowledge  and  skill  go,  a  swarming  conception  which 
escapes  from  all  the  conditions  of  verisimilitude  that 
had  hitherto  been  respected  in  ceilings.  On  the 
walls  an  ancient  picture  of  a  Roman  Masquerade,  in- 
finitely curious  ;  in  the  neighboring  rooms  family  por- 
traits and  ancient  busts.  In  the  form  of  a  sort  of 
console  a  Madame  Barberini  of  old  days,  travestied  as 
Diana  in  repose,  sleeps  her  last  sleep  over  an  enor- 
mous and  ancient  sarcophagus.  Restored  mausoleums 
in  this  way  become  here  furniture  for  an  antechamber 
or  a  dining-room. 

As  for  the  gallery,  which  is  situated  in  a  low  en- 


48  ROME. 

tresol,  one  of  its  attractions  is  that  it  contains  the 
original  and  indisputable  portrait  of  a  woman  beloved 
by  Raphael,  whom  tradition  has  made  a  female  baker. 
Rome  possesses  five  or  six  copies  of  it,  all  inferior  to 
the  authenticated  example  in  the  Palazzo  Barberini. 
They  show  that  the  adorable  brunette  of  the  Tribuna 
of  the  Uifizi  at  Florence  is  not  that  friend  of  the 
painter  whose  real  name  was  Margaret,  and  who  is 
called  La  Fomarina,  and  I  regret  it  for  his  sake,  for 
the  lady  of  the  Uffizi  is  handsomer  than  the  lady  at 
Rome.  The  latter,  as  she  is  represented  by  the  por- 
trait in  the  Barberini,  is  the  reaction  of  an  artist 
weary  of  the  ideal,  and  of  ethereal  creations.  She 
is  a  substantial,  hearty  woman  in  full  bloom,  whose 
nose  drinks  the  wind  with  full  respiration,  she  has 
little  greedy  eyes,  and  a  mouth  softened  by  laughtei; 
The  jet-black  locks  are  harmonized  with  the  skin  by 
brown  tones  of  burning  warmth  ;  she  has  about  her 
the  sketch  of  a  diaphanous  robe.  The  signature  of 
the  master  (or  of  the  slave)  is  on  a  narrow  circlet  at- 
tached in  the  shape  of  a  bracelet  round  the  biceps  of 
the  left  arm.  One  perceives  that  she  was  finely 
made,  and  the  hands  are  pretty,  but  the  model  has 
less  delicacy  than  frankness.  The  piece  in  its  smoky 
tone  is  cleverly  restored,  but  the  hands  and  arms 
show  vexatious  indications  of  having  been  repainted. 
For  anybody  who  knows  the  two  portraits,  that  of 
Rome  and  that  of  Florence,  two  women  who  have 
not   the   most   distant  likeness,   the   once-celebrated 


LA  FOENARINA.  49 

work  of  Quatremere  de  Quincy  on  the  works  of 
Eaphael  loses  niiicli  of  its  value.  He  expatiates 
gravelj  on  the  question  as  to  whether  it  is  the  For- 
narina  of  the  Pitti  Palace,  or  its  reproduction  in  the 
Barberini  Palace,  which  is  the  true  original.  He  can 
only  have  seen  one  of  the  two  pictures,  for  it  is  very 
much  as  if  one  should  ask  which  is  the  original  of  a 
portrait,  Mademoiselle  de  la  Valliere  or  Madame  de 
Montespan. 

Around  this  picture  there  are  others  of  which  one 
ought  to  speak  if  only  in  order  to  warn  good  souls 
against  the  pretensions  of  the  catalogue.  A  Holy 
Family  of  Andrea  del  Sarto,  that  one  of  his  pupils 
would  have  painted  with  a  less  awkward  servility  of 
imitation ;  apocryphal  Madonnas  of  Bellini,  of  Fran- 
cia,  of  that  Antonio  Razzi  who  is  calumniated  in  more 
ways  than  one ;  a  Jesus  among  the  Doctors,  a  bit  of 
Teutonic  barbarism,  impudently  attributed  to  Albert 
Diirer ;  a  cardinal's  portrait  which  might  compromise 
the  name  of  Titian  if  the  draperies  were  less  dull ;  a 
so-called  portrait  of  Masaccio,  in  which  they  have 
only  copied  his  cap  :  equivocal  works  which  go  to 
prove  the  oblivion  of  tradition  even  in  a  country  so 
rich  in  subjects  of  study. 

A  curious  picture  in  this  gallery  is  the  Death  of 
Germanicus,  by  Poussin ;  a  canvas  of  line  color, 
dramatic  sentiment,  and  great  simplicity  ;  and  with 
this  master  candor  is  hardly  common.  Probably, 
when  he  executed  it,  the  artist  had  not  yet  become 

4 


50  KOME. 

so  thoroughly  imbued  with  the  spirit  of  antiquity.  A 
reminiscence  of  the  etiquette  of  courts  governs  the 
arrangement  of  the  Death  of  Germanicus:  as  we  gaze 
at  these  Romans  we  are  reminded  of  the  warriors  of 
Lebrun  ;  and  involuntarily  look  for  Lauzun  and  the 
Marshal  de  la  Feuillade  by  the  pillow  of  the  son  of 
Drusus.  Robbed  of  his  mannerisms,  and  separated 
from  his  system,  Poussin  becomes  less  professorial 
and  more  pleasing. 

It  is  here  also  that  we  find  the  original  of  an  ex- 
tremely sweet  portrait  of  a  young  girl,  reproduced 
in  engravings  of  all  sizes — the  Beatrice  de'  Cenci 
of  Guide,  a  fascinating,  suffering  face,  wdth  a  head- 
dress of  white  draperies  heavily  arranged — a  melan- 
choly interesting  figure,  though  a  little  too  set. 

Michelangelo  da  Caravaggio,  painted,  in  an  efi'ect  of 
shadow  after  the  manner  of  Rembrandt,  with  a  head- 
dress still  more  massive,  the  mother  of  this  heroine ; 
finally,  a  third  picture,  the  best  and  the  least  re- 
marked, the  portrait  of  a  ripe  beauty  with  an  elegant 
sweep  of  outline  and  a  physiognomy  expressive  of 
calm  cruelty,  transmits  to  us,  they  say,  the  features 
of  the  step-mother  of  Beatrice,  Lucrezia  Petroni : 
this  work  is  by  8cipio  of  Gaeta.  Not  here,  but  a 
little  later,  we  shall  attempt  to  retrace  that  horrible 
tale.  These  fine  portraits,  especially  the  first,  are 
suspected  of  being  apocryphal ;  in  fact,  although  at 
the  death  of  Beatrice,  Reni  Avas  already  four-and- 
twenty,  it   is   doubtful  whether  he  arrived  at  Rome 


THE  SCIARRA  CxALLERY.  51 

before   the  death  of  Clement   VIII.     Moreover,  the 
portrait  of  the  Cenci  has  less  the  air  of  a  study  ex- 
ecuted from  nature,  than  of  a  head  composed  with 
the   help  of  an   earlier   portrait.      Guido   may   have 
executed    aftemvards    an    idealized    likeness    of    the 
famous  heroine.     However  this  may  be,  to  personify 
so  romantic  a  victim  no  face  could  have  been  chosen 
more  touching  in  expression  or  more  sure  to  arouse 
pity.     From  the  street  of  the  Quattro  Fontane  to  the 
Corso  the  distance  is  not  great ;  it  is  still  less  from 
the  Barberini  Gallery  to  the  Sciarra  Gallery,  a  col- 
lection which  may  be  considered  the  tribuna  or  sanc- 
tuary of  the   other.     This   casket  possesses   in   fact 
among  some  pebbles  of  the   Rhine   certain  precious 
stones  of  fine  water.*     The  two  figures  called  Vanity 
and  Modesty  justify  by  their  perfection  the  mistake 
of  those  who  have   so  often  attributed  to  Leonardo 
the  works  of  Bernardino  Luini,  that  affectionate  ar- 
tist so  loyal  to  the  glorification  of  his  master,  like  all 
Avho  knew  and  loved  that  famoiis  man.     Between  the 
Circe  of  Garofalo,  a  landscape  where  the  companions 
of  Ulysses  are  in  the  very  act  of  being  transformed 
into  beasts,  and  the  St.  Sebastian  of  Perugino,  Albert 
Diirer  in  the  Death  of  the  Virgin  makes  us  pardon 
the   country   of  his   birth   by   force  of  his   skill  and 
simplicity.      He  rarely  gains  this  triumph. 

Poussin  has  in  this  palace  some  curious  canvases : 

*  Most  of  the  pictures  of  this  collection  have  been  sold,  and 
the  gallery  can  only  be  visited  by  special  permission. 


52  ROME. 

the  St.  Erasmus,  whose  bowels  executioners  are  tear- 
ing out,  a  ghastly  subject  handled  with  vigor  so  as  to 
be  executed  in  mosaic,  a  picture  with  more  energy 
and  truth  than  his  representation  of  St.  Peter ;  the 
St.  Matthew  writing,  a  very  fine  composition  which 
has  not  become  too  dark ;  the  views  of  the  banks  of 
the  Tiber,  and  of  the  Acqua  Acetosa,  rendered  by  a 
master  who  loved  the  sites  and  the  district. 

But  among  smaller  marvels  are  certain  tiny  land- 
scapes of  Claude  Lorraine  ;  one  in  particular,  which, 
from  the  sides  of  the  green  crater  into  which  heaven 
has  poured  the  lake  of  Albano,  represents  on  the 
horizon  the  crest  of  Castel  Gandolfo.  Another  of 
these  compositions,  of  a  more  elaborate  finish,  was 
painted  on  a  plate  of  silver,  a  piece  of  far-fetched 
luxury  to  little  purpose,  which  nobody  can  perceive, 
and  that  I  should  not  know  of  but  that  the  Princess 
Barberini  since  then  revealed  it  to  me  in  a  Paris 
salon.  The  weight  of  a  silver  mounting  scarcely  in- 
creases the  value  of  the  jewels  of  the  master,  Claude. 

Rome  Triumphant,  and  the  Death  of  St.  John  the 
Baptist,  are  the  two  most  important  pieces  of  Valen- 
tino ;  the  last  especially  being  a  painting  of  great 
power.  From  this  picture  to  that  of  Michelangelo  da 
Caravaggio— realist  at  a  time  when  people  did  not 
yet  possess  words  so  ill  compounded — it  is  but  a  step. 
This  picture  will  strike  a  simple  spectator  vividly,  and 
may  possibly  arrest  the  passing  connoisseur,  and  even 
the  moralist,  who  usually  only  understands  the  vicious 


The  Violin  Player,  Raphael 


THE  SCIAKEA  GALLERY.  53 

sides  of  the  arts.  Two  sharpers  agree  to  pluck  a 
pigeon ;  one  posted  behind  the  stripUng  marks  on 
his  lingers  for  his  accomplice  the  number  of  points. 
The  first  is  an  old  rascal,  seamed,  stamped,  and 
branded  by  vice  and  infamy  in  every  line  of  his 
face ;  the  other,  the  accomplice  who  plays,  pale, 
stooping,  prematurely  degraded,  confronts  wdth  his 
debased  adolescence  the  candid  youth  of  his  victim. 
From  his  doublet  he  withdraws  a  card,  assuring  him- 
self by  an  oblique  and  false  glance  of  the  success  of 
his  knavery. 

I  have  reserved  to  the  last  the  Young  Man  with 
the  Bow,  or  Violinist  of  Raphael.  It  is  here  that  we 
find  this  so  justly  renowned  picture,  dated  1518  and 
signed.  Everybody  recalls  that  delicate  and  femi- 
nine face,  with  its  black  cap  so  gracefidly  adjusted 
and  posed  above  a  broad  collar  of  fur.  Many  artists 
have  copied  this  masterpiece.  Nobody  in  my  opinion 
has  seized  it  so  well,  nor  drawn  it  with  so  much  in- 
telligence, as  Clement  Chaplain,  medallion-engraver, 
sculptor,  and  laureate  of  our  school.  These  tAvo 
palaces  gave  me  a  fancy  for  collections  formed  by 
families  of  the  covintry,  the  intelligent  luxuries  of  the 
Roman  princes.  Some  disappointments,  however, 
awaited  me  on  the  Corso,  in  the  Doria  Palace,  whose 
salons,  richly  decorated  in  the  time  of  Innocent  X. 
with  those  daubings  that  our  architects  of  the  great 
reign  imitated,  exhibit  among  several  masterpieces, 
mediocre  copies  and  apocryphal  pieces  in  great  num- 


54  ROME. 

ber.  The  catalogues  not  being  printed,  it  may  be 
useful  to  point  out  the  best  pictures,  and  to  mark 
among  the  golden  ears  parasitic  blights,  such  as  some 
Murillos,  several  Andrea  del  Sartos  and  Francias  that 
those  masters  never  saw.  Poussin,  Van  Dyck,  Titian 
especially,  are  frequently  compromised  by  cold  imi- 
tators ;  they  give  for  an  original  of  the  last  painter  a 
weak  enough  copy  of  his  Magdalen  of  the  Pitti  Palace. 
Wandering  here  and  there,  you  come  upon  a  fine 
Descent  from  the  Cross  in  the  style  of  the  early 
painters  of  the  north,  attributed  presumptuously  to 
Hemling ;  and  a  good  portrait  of  a  man,  attributed  to 
Giorgione.  On  the  right  of  the  great  gallery  let  us 
notice  a  pretty  little  reader,  by  Lucas  of  Ley  den,  and 
let  us  unmask  a  copy  of  the  Aldobrandine  Nuptials, 
attributed  very  gratuitously  to  Poussin.  In  the  centre 
of  the  bay  you  will  be  scandalized  by  portraits  usurp- 
ing the  names  of  Raphael,  Rembrandt,  Rubens,  Van 
Dyck.  Those  who  have  named  these  paltry  things 
have  not  even  paid  any  attention  to  the  chronological 
indications  furnished  by  the  dress,  for  the  way  in 
which  the  pictures  are  assigned  involves  the  most 
amusing  blunders.  Thus  a  rather  villanous  copy  of 
a  picture  of  three  faces  in  the  Pitti  Palace,  which 
represents  three  Italians  without  beards,  is  thus  de- 
scribed, "  Calvin,  Luther,  and  Catherine,  by  Gior- 
gione." Giorgio  Barbarelli,  who  died  in  1511,  can- 
not have  painted  the  portrait  of  the  wife  of  Luther, 
still  less   that   of    Calvin,    who   was    born    in    1509. 


THE  DORIA  PALACE.  55 

They  attribute  to  Leonardo  da  Yinci  a  copy  of  the 
Joanna  II.  of  Arragou  that  the  catalogues  of  the 
Louvre  properly  assign  to  Raphael.  The  copy  in  the 
Doria  Palace  offers  some  variations,  especially  in  the 
background,  where  a  bright  green  curtain  recalls 
Andrea  di  Solaria.  This  charming  head  of  the 
granddaughter  of  Ferdinand  I.,  who  married  the 
Constable  Colonna,  is  known  at  Rome  under  the 
pseudonym  of  Queen  Joanna  of  Naples.  What  more 
common  than  such  blunders  !  At  Paris  did  they  not 
take  the  Lucrezia  Crivelli  for  La  Belle  Ferronniere  ? 
This  good  and  old  copy  of  Madame  Colonna  has  a 
false  air  of  the  school  of  Leonardo ;  but  the  original, 
that  Ave  have  had  in  our  possession  since  the  reign 
of  Francis  L,  not  having  any  very  marked  character- 
istics of  a  portrait  by  Raphael,  recourse  has  been  had 
to  the  usual  expedient  of  throwing  on  to  Giulio  Ro- 
mano the  execution  of  the  body  and  the  accessories. 
The  painting  by  Claude,  called  "  The  Mill,"  con- 
tains all  the  poetry  of  the  Roman  Campagna.  A 
river  of  some  breadth,  its  basin  cut  oif  by  a  sluice, 
descends  facing  the  spectator  from  the  Alban  hills 
which  bound  plains  strewn  with  the  ruins  of  aque- 
ducts 5  at  the  back  to  the  right  is  a  small  toAvn  in- 
spired by  that  picturesque  Etruria  of  Avhich  the  old 
painter  dreamed  before  the  ruins  of  the  Latin  towns  ; 
on  the  other  bank  turns — at  a  corner  of  a  rustic 
manufactory — a  water-mill  Avhose  wheel  shines  like 
silver ;  it   contrasts  with  the  small  Temple  of  Vesta 


56  KOME. 

seen  at  the  foot  of  a  hill ;  the  Avhole  tones  into  a  wide 
foreground  of  verdure  plunged,  by  enormous  trees, 
into  thick  translucent  shadow,  in  Avhich  idyllic  figures 
glance  to  and  fro  engaged  in  dancing  and  rustic  games. 
The  vigor,  the  intensity,  the  movement  of  this  fore- 
ground, prolonged  into  a  distant  perspective,  produce 
a  delicate  and  variegated  light  which  fascinates  our 
eyes  and  attracts  them  to  the  sky,  to  the  Monte  Gen- 
naro,  the  snows  of  the  Apennines,  and  the  remote 
hiUs  Avhich  bound  the  Campagna.  Before  a  diversity 
of  detail  like  this  we  have  difficulty  in  understanding 
such  limpid  tranquillity  of  effect  and  impression. 
There  is  nothing  staring  ;  as  in  nature,  you  have  to 
get  accustomed  and  recognize  the  Avhole  site  little  by 
little. 

After  crossing  several  halls,  in  which  nothing  stops 
one  but  a  spurious  Filippo  Lippi,  you  come  to  a  very 
light  boudoir,  which  of  itself  would  justify  this  visit. 
You  are  received  there  by  the  great  admiral,  Andrea 
Doria,  dressed  in  black,  and  having  on  his  head  a 
crumpled  cap,  which,  like  his  capacious  and  Avorn 
garments,  suggests  the  activity  of  a  leader  Avho  cares 
but  little  for  his  person.  The  sailor  has  an  unkempt 
and  matted  beard,  a  bronzed  complexion,  a  piercing 
eye.  The  authority  and  gravity  of  a  person  of  mark, 
the  duplicity  of  the  Genoese  and  the  audacity  of  the 
corsair,  complicate  this  strange  physiognomy,  ren- 
dered more  pronounced  by  the  bold  forcible  style  of 
Sebastian  del  Piombo.      Opposite  the  illustrious  chief 


THE  DOKIA  PALACE.  '     57 

of  the  Dorias  is  the  great  glory  of  the  Pamphili,  Pope 
Innocent  X.,  by  Velasquez.  Between  the  two  paint- 
ings the  contrast  is  not  less  vivid  than  it  was  between 
the  careers  of  the  originals,  the  pontiff  and  the  pirate. 
Innocent  X.,  his  high  complexion  and  ruddy  skin 
seeming  to  shine  Avith  moisture,  blazes  forth  from  a 
hood  of  red  satin  with  a  purple-colored  background ; 
the  figure  is  seated  in  a  chair  of  orange-red  velvet. 
The  surprising  harmony  of  all  these  staring  tones, 
the  life,  that  of  actual  flesh  and  blood,  Avhicli  circu- 
lates under  the  features  with  an  exuberance  that 
might  have  made  Rubens  despair,  give  to  this  por- 
trait a  superior  rank  among  the  works  of  Velasquez. 
The  hands  only,  though  drawn  Avith  feeling,  are  a 
little  feeble. 

What  shall  I  quote  besides  f  Some  pretty  repro- 
ductions of  the  Paradise  of  Breughel,  and  a  Village 
Festival  by  Teniers;  a  Holy  Family  by  Bellini,  wholly 
repainted  |  a  greenish  monk,  entitled  the  Confessor 
of  Rubens,  which  would  give  prolonged  amusement 
to  the  Antwerpers  ;  lastly,  a  Madonna  col  Bambino 
surrounded  by  two  saints,  attributed  to  Francesco 
Francia,  which  is  an  enchanting  picture.  Reduce 
this  collection  by  three-fourths  and  you  would  have  a 
charming  gallery,  in  which  everything  Avould  possess 
real  worth.  The  surplus  might  serve  to  illustrate 
the  art  of  manufacturing  paintings  after  the  manner 
of  the  different  masters  ;  workshops  of  dishonesty 
which  abounded  in  Rome  in  the  last  century.     After 


58  •  ROME. 

my  visit  to  the  Barberini  Palace  the  features  of  the 
Beatrice  de'  Cenci  remained  in  my  memory,  and  I 
had  vague  dreams  of  seeking  out  the  paLace  once  in- 
habited by  the  actors  in  one  of  the  most  sombre 
tragedies  of  the  past.  I  was  still  ignorant  of  the  situ- 
ation of  the  house,  when  one  day  wandering  about 
the  city  I  took  it  into  my  head  that  chance  had 
brought  me  to  the  quarter  of  the  Cenci. 

At  the  entrance  to  the  Trastevere  by  the  Ponte 
Rotto,  at  the  back  of  the  chapel  of  San  Crispino, 
which  is  kept  by  a  sacristan  who  does  his  cooking  in 
a  cassock  in  the  middle  of  the  street,  I  had  gone  down 
to  view  the  old  arches  of  the  bridge,  and  the  charm- 
ing spot  Avhich  takes  life  from  the  round  Temple  of 
the  Sun,  the  cypresses  and  the  ruins  of  the  Palatine, 
Avhen  I  found  myself  in  a  small  piazza  of  a  very  sin- 
gular kind.  It  is  irregular,  steep,  fringed  Avith  de- 
cayed houses,  or  rather  with  nests  constructed  in  old 
feudal  walls,  the  whole  attaching  itself  to  the  chevet 
of  the  chapel,  and  in  a  state  of  dilapidation  truly  sin- 
ister. By  means  of  flights  of  mouldering  steps  erect- 
ed against  the  party-walls  of  this  cut-throat  spot, 
windows  turned  into  doors  furnish  an  approach  to 
dens  of  filthiness  ;  on  cords  stretched  from  one  wall  to 
another  swing  in  the  wind  tattered  things  washed  in 
the  mud  of  the  Tiber  ;  old  broken  pots  adorn  windows 
without  frames  or  glass  ;  horrible  hags  in  mud-colored 
rags  and  half-dressed  men  appear  about  the  door- 
ways.    But  in  the  midst  of  these  peeling  walls,  which 


THE  CENCI  PALACE.  59 

have  been  perhaps  patched  ever  since  the  days  of  an- 
tiquity, there  shines  a  great  armorial  escutcheon  from 
which  stand  out  the  forked  antlers  of  a  heraldic  stag. 

HoAV  comes  it  that  the  half-worn  device  carved  on 
this  stone  is  that  of  the  Cenci  of  Bologna  ?  This  can 
only  be  explained  by  the  great  numbers  of  domains 
that  the  house  possessed;  still  as  I  deciphered  this  un- 
expected record,  I  Avas  all  the  more  persuaded  that  I 
had  discovered  the  ruins  of  the  palace  of  Beatrice,  as 
I  knew  it  to  be  situated  in  a  poor  quarter  in  the 
neighborhood  of  the  river.  To  put  away  all  doubt  I 
proceeded  to  ask  some  half-dressed  girls  who  Avere 
chattering  in  front  of  a  door  under  a  pretence  of  sew- 
ing. They  referred  me  to  a  matron  who  Avas  selling 
with  an  air  of  great  importance  three  bundles  of  vege- 
tables, and  Avho,  having  convoked  the  Avhole  quarter 
to  make  out  my  meaning,  pointed  out  to  me  on  the 
other  bank  beyond  the  Quattro  Capi,  toAvards  the 
rione  of  the  tanners,  the  situation  of  the  Cenci  Bolog- 
netti  Palace.  So  I  looked  once  more  at  the  unknoAvn 
cloaca  of  the  chcA'et  of  San  Crispino,  into  Avhich  per- 
haps no  painter  has  ever  A^entured,  and  then  went  in 
search  of  the  palace  that  I  thought  I  had  found. 

The  aspect  of  the  house  is  scarcely  less  appropriate 
to  the  melodrama  Avhich  has  made  the  name  of  the 
Cenci  so  famihar.  It  is  in  the  corner  of  a  small 
choked  and  uneven  piazza  that  the  old  entry  to  the 
palace  hides  itself  under  a  truncated  toAver,  the  palace 
on  this  side  presenting  a  square  outline.     Iron  cross- 


60  KOME. 

bars  impress  on  the  fa9ade  a  character  of  mystery 
and  duress  ;  one  of  the  gates,  arched  and  carved,  is 
surmomited  by  an  antique  mask  of  a  Medusa  of  a 
dreary  and  tearful  expression.  In  the  other  corner 
of  the  piazza,  shut  in  and  kigubrious  as  the  court  of 
an  old  dungeon,  Francesco  Cenci — he  who  was  assas- 
sinated— had  raised  towards  1575,  to  the  honor  of  St. 
Thomas,  a  small  oratory,  an  inscription  on  the  wall 
recording  the  fad.  There  are  also  fitted  into  the  ad- 
joining Avails  two  small  cippi  or  funeral  altars,  bear- 
ing the  name  of  one  Marcus  Cintius.  These  were 
the  Cenci  stone  charters,  for  their  boast  was  that  they 
had  descended  from  this  Cintius,  as  the  Muti  descended 
from  Mutius  Scsevola.  They  would  have  been  more 
happily  inspired  had  they  claimed  kinship  with  Lucius 
Cincius  Alimentus,  who,  153  before  our  era,  being 
praetor  in  Sicily,  was  made  prisoner  by  Hannibal,  of 
whom  he  Avrote  a  history,  quoted  by  Macrobius  and 
praised  by  Livy.  But  the  ignorance  of  the  feudal 
barons  was  as  great  as  their  vanity,  as  is  frequently 
proclaimed  by  pretensions  of  this  sort.  The  Santa 
Croce  boasted  of  being  of  the  line  of  Valerius  Publi- 
cola  :  hence  the  name  of  Santa  Maria  de  Publicolis 
given  to  the  church  Avhere  they  have  their  burying- 
places,  among  which,  besides  fine  monumental  stones 
of  the  fourteenth  century,  one  ought  to  mention  a 
magnificent  Florentine  mausoleum. 

The  continuation  of  the  Cenci  Palace,  in  the  inside 
of  which  there  is  nothing  to  recall  any  longer   the 


THE  RIPETTA.  61 

contemporaries  of  Clement  VIII.,  extends  to  another 
larger  and  lower  square  in  front  of  the  synagogue. 
The  principal  existing  entry  is  surmounted  by  the  in- 
scription, Cenci  Bolognetti;  but  the  heirs  of  the 
name  do  not  live  in  the  palace. 

It  was  in  the  Castle  of  St.  Angelo — Hadrian's  mole 
— that  Roman  version  of  the  Tower  of  Nesle,  that  the 
terrible  tragedy  of  their  ancestors  came  to  its  end. 
You  can  by  making  some  turns  approach  this  strange- 
outlined  monument  by  alleys  that  isolate  and  set  off 
the  massive  and  imposing  prison-house. 

Before  going  doAvn  so  far  as  this,  the  Tiber  de- 
scribes a  semicircle  which,  encroaching  on  the  most 
populous  streets  in  Rome,  seems  to  throttle  the  hand- 
some quarters  lying  between  the  Pincian  and  the 
river.  It  is  at  the  angle  of  the  elbow  formed  by  the 
Tiber  that  Clement  XI.  constructed  the  little  port 
of  Ripetta,  with  wide  steps  that  make  the  approach 
easy  for  the  people,  who  in  this  busy  street  unload 
firewood,  wine,  oil,  grain,  and  the  other  produce  which 
comes  down  from  the  Sabine  country  and  from  Um- 
bria.  The  port  of  Ripetta,  opening  a  few  paces  from 
the  Corso  on  the  much-frequented  street  which  leads 
from  the  Piazza  del  Popolo  to  the  vicinity  of  the 
Piazza  Navone,  fronts  a  deserted  plot  which  has  never 
been  built  upon,  and  whose  verdure  serves  as  a  ped- 
estal for  the  Monte  Mario  situated  in  the  background.* 

*  This  tract  has  now  been  laid  out  in  new  streets  and  rows  of 
modern  houses. 


62  KOME. 

To  reach  the  other  side,  the  castle  of  St.  Angelo, 
and  the  suburbs  of  the  Borgo,  through  the  fields,  they 
established  perhaps  twenty  centuries  since  a  ferry 
Avhich,  leaving  the  most  lively  centre  of  the  city, 
ended  in  a  sandy  soHtude.  In  less  than  five  minutes, 
the  time  required  to  go  from  one  bank  to  the  other, 
you  were  transported  from  the  greasy,  muddy,  much- 
betrodden  pavement  of  the  Via  di  Repetta,  to  a  track 
bordered  as  the  winter  came  to  an  end  with  green 
elders,  with  blackthorns  already  in  blossom  and  eglan- 
tine in  bud.  The  narrow  beaten  path  had  for  its  set- 
ting clumps  of  lotus  and  violet.  By  turning  to  the 
right,  you  came  to  the  fields  where  Cincinnatus,  forty 
minutes  away  from  the  Campus  Martins,  lived  so  far 
from  Rome  ;  he  would  be  scarcely  separated  from  it 
in  our  day.  If  you  Avent  straight  forward  instead  of 
turning  to  the  north,  you  reached  pastures,  miniature 
gardens,  cottages  which  the  people  of  Marseilles  call 
hastides  and  the  Romans  vignes.  There  were  some 
country  houses  among  the  farms,  whose  coiu'tyards, 
all  encumbered  with  rustic  implements,  served  as  a 
close  for  chickens,  geese,  and  sheep.  The  city,  cut 
off  by  a  strip  of  water,  was  but  fifty  metres  off;  the 
noise  of  public  vehicles  mingled  with  the  song  of  the 
lark.  The  stretch  of  the  Tiber,  St.  Peter,  and  in  the 
backgromid  the  side  of  the  Castle  of  St.  Angelo,  vast 
and  sombre,  bound  in  this  little  nook  of  solitude. 

It  is  very  surprising  that  having  absorbed,  on  one 
bank  as  well  as  on  the   other,  three-quarters  of  that 


THE  CASTLE  OF  vST.  ANGELO.  63 

circumference  of  which  the  stream  describes  a  half, 
the  city  should  not  have  invaded  for  so  long-  the 
ground  which  under  the  Caesars  would  have  connect- 
ed the  Flaminian  Way  Avith  the  habitations  across 
the  Tiber,  and  which  ever  since  the  time  of  Constan- 
tino woidd  have  placed  the  rich  quarter  of  the  town 
in  direct  communication  with  the  strong  Castle  of 
the  Popes  and  the  Vatican. 

But  no  one,  and  here  is  a  trait  which  illustrates 
Roman  sedileship,  no  one  ever  bethought  him  of  throw- 
ing a  bridge  across  the  port  of  Ripetta,  that  desert 
strip  that  bounds  the  city  at  this  point.  Until  com- 
paratively lately  one  boat  sufficed  for  the  traffic,  and 
the  pathAvay  that  had  been  beaten  for  two  thousand 
years  has  never  grown  larger,  so  scanty  Avas  the 
number  of  town-folk  who  thought  themselves  rich 
enough  to  shorten  their  road  by  making  use  of  a  boat- 
man in  Avhose  palm  you  had  to  leave  a  halfpenny.* 
In  spite  of  the  original  head-dress  Avith  Avhich  the 
popes  from  the  time  of  Boniface  IX.  haA^e  croAvned  it, 
the  tOAver-shaped  burying-place  of  the  Antonines, 
which  is  not  less  than  six  hundred  feet  in  circumfer- 
ence, still  preserA^es  an  equiA^ocal  and  sinister  ex- 
pression, especially  Avhen  vicAved  from  the  riA'er,  or 
from  the  poor  districts  of  Avhich  I  haA^e  spoken. 
Transformed  in  the  middle  ages  into  a  prison  and  a 
fortress ;  disguised  afterwards  as  the   residence  of  a 

*  The  Ponte  Kipetta  or  Cavour  now  spans  the  river  at  this 
point. 


64  EOME. 

prince,  then  used  as  a  barrack,  the  mole  of  Hadrian, 
of  which  the  Orsini  in  the  fourteenth  century  made  a 
lair  for  themselves,  has  never  been  able  to  rid  itself 
of  the  look  of  that  for  which  it  "\yas  originally  in- 
tended ;  before  the  postern  one  still  expects  to  see  a 
coffin  go  in  and  an  executioner  come  out. 

These  sepulchral  dungeons  were  then  the  fashion. 
Without  mentioning  those  on  the  Appian  Way,  let  us 
remember  that  on  the  other  bank,  near  the  Ripetta 
there  rose,  and  still  stands  in  part,  the  model  of  the 
Castle  of  St.  Angelo,  the  mole  built  by  Augustus  for 
the  Caesars  of  his  femily.  AVe  may  as  well  say  a  few 
words  about  it,  if  only  to  show  the  uselessness  of 
troubling  oneself  to  go  there. 

It  is  a  thick,  large  circular  erection  encumbered  by 
surrounding  buildings.  Its  walls  of  opus  reticulatum. 
TheColonna  fortified  it  and  quartered  themselves  there 
in  the  middle  ages.  But  noAv,  irony  of  fate,  that  vast 
colimibarimn,  where,  with  the  exception  of  Nero,  most 
of  the  Ciesars  down  to  Hadrian  reposed,  has  been 
converted  into  a  second-rate  theatre  and  circus,  where 
daily  performances  are  given. 

What  a  monstrous  melodrama  is  the  history  of  the 
Castle  of  St.  Angelo  !  It  only  wore  a  comparatively 
smiling  look  in  the  days  when  it  received  the  dead. 
Procopious  paints  it  for  us  during  that  first  epoch;  the 
immense  three-storied  rotunda,  surmounted  by  a  pyra- 
midal roof,  crowned  by  a  huge  bronze  fir-cone,  had 
its  sides  covered  Avith  Parian  marble,  intersected  with 


THE  CASTLE  OF  ST.  ANGELO.  G5 

columns  and  surmounted  with  a  ring  of  Greek  statues; 
the  iirst  story  was  a  quadranguhir  basement  decorated 
with  festoons,  and  tablets  with  funeral  inscriptions, 
and  colossal  equestrian  groups  in  gilt  bronze  at  the 
four  corners.  Round  the  monument  was  an  iron 
grating  surmounted  by  peacocks,  also  in  gilt. 

In  537  this  fine  structure  was  still  intact ;  but 
Vitiges  having  attacked  it,  the  defenders  broke  up  the 
statues,  in  order  to  hurl  the  pieces  on  the  assailants. 
During  the  three  centuries  which  followed,  the  mole 
of  Hadrian,  connected  from  the  time  of  Honorius  per- 
haps, Avith  the  defences  of  the  city,  served  as  a  for- 
tress. It  was  to  entrench  himself  there  that  the 
patrician  Crescentius,  Avho  wished  (974)  to  restore 
the  Roman  republic,  made  himself  master  of  it.  He 
even  held  it  tolerably  long,  as  the  building  took  from 
him  the  name  of  Castel  Crescenzio.  But,  aided  by 
Gregory  V.,  the  Emperor  Otto  invaded  Rome  and 
massacred  Crescentius  with  his  principal  partisans 
at  a  banquet,  and  the  tomb  of  Hadrian  once  more 
changed  hands. 

Half  a  century  before,  this  spot  had  been  the  theatre 
of  a  tragedy  which  followed  a  period  of  strange 
saturnalia.  An  incongruous  rehc  of  antique  profli- 
gacy and  of  the  monstrosities  of  the  lower  empire, 
drawing  a  mischievous  power  from  feudal  institutions, 
Theodora,  a  Roman  lady,  illustrious  for  her  rank  and 
her  beauty,  quartered  herself  in  the  year  908  in  the 
Castle  of  St.  Angelo,  from  whence  she  exercised  over 


66  ROME. 

Rome  a  complete  tyranny,  sustained  against  German 
influence  by  an  Italian  party,  which  counted  among 
its  chiefs  Adalbert  II.,  Count  of  Tuscany,  the  father 
of  this  Messalina.  Theodora  caused  several  pontiffs 
to  be  deposed,  and  nominated  eight  popes  success- 
ively. She  had  a  daughter  as  beautiful  and  as 
powerful  as  herself,  and  still  more  depraved.  Ma- 
rozia,  so  she  was  called,  reigned  likewise  in  the  Castle 
of  St.  Angelo,  and  caused  the  election  of  Sergius  III., 
Anastasius  III.,  and  John  X.,  a  creature  of  Theodora, 
who  had  had  him  nomhiated  to  the  bishopric  of  Ra- 
venna. Early  left  a  widow  by  the  death  of  a  Mar- 
quis of  Tusculura,  and  married  to  Guido,  Prince  of 
Tuscany,  Marozia  speedily  had  John  X.  suffocated  in 
the  Castle  of  St.  Angelo  ;  then  united  by  a  third  mar- 
riage to  Hugo  of  Provence,  brother  of  her  second 
husband,  after  having  successively  placed  on  the  pon- 
tiflcal  throne  Leo  VI.  and  Stephen  VIII.,  she  gave 
the  tiara  to  John  XL,  one  of  her  you^nger  sons.  She 
had  only  too  many  children,  for  one  of  them  im- 
prisoned in  this  same  dungeon  both  his  mother  and 
his  brother,  the  Pope,  and  there  destroyed  them. 
Such  at  that  time,  under  the  brutal  pressure  of  feudal 
anarchy,  had  the  chair  of  St.  Peter  come  to. 

The  Castle  of  St.  Angelo,  from  the  seventh  to  the 
ninth  century,  is  found  connected  with  all  the  out- 
rages and  all  the  factions  that  desolated  Rome ;  and, 
down  to  the  end  of  the  fourteenth,  its  history  is  not 
very   different.     It  was  then  that   Boniface  IX.,   a 


THE  CASTLE  OF  ST.  ANGELO.  67 

Neapolitan  by  birth,  began  the  alterations  which 
brought  it  to  its  present  form.  Alexander  VI.  con- 
tinued the  restorations,  and  completed  the  covered 
passageway  begun  by  John  XXIII.,  which  connects 
the  Castle  with  the  Vatican.  This  idea  proved 
profitable  (1527)  to  Clement  VII.,  when  he  was 
obliged,  in  order  to  escape  from  the  hordes  of  the 
Constable  de  Bourbon,  to  seek  an  inviolable  asylum 
in  the  thick  walls  of  the  Castle  of  8t.  Angelo. 

Before  entering,  let  us  recall  the  manner  in  which 
it  acquired  the  name  that  time  has  consecrated. 

In  the  year  590,  as  St.  Gregory  the  Great,  recently 
called  to  the  pontificate  by  the  people  and  the  bishops, 
was  bewailing  the  pestilence  that  was  decimating  his 
flock,  he  ordered  a  general  procession  to  the  tomb  of 
St.  Peter  to  implore  the  removal  of  this  scourge.  The 
procession  was  headed  by  Pope  Gregory  himself,  who 
walked  with  naked  feet.  As  it  crossed  the  Tiber  on 
the  ^lian  Bridge,  built  by  Hadrian,  a  bridge  which 
still  stands  and  confronts  his  mausoleum,  suddenly 
above  the  mole  Gregory  saw,  emerging  from  the 
clouds  and  appearing  to  him  as  a  symbol  of  hope,  the 
radiant  Archangel  St.  Michael.  Thus  it  was  not  by 
any  means,  as  the  guide-books  have  it,  on  account  of 
the  bronze  statue  placed  on  the  top  by  Benedict  XIV. 
that  the  mole  became  the  Castel  Sant'  Angelo.  Any 
book  on  the  subject  would  show  that  it  has  been  called 
so  for  a  thousand  years.  Every  country  possesses 
among  its  judicial  annals  some  never-to-be-forgotten 


68  ROME. 

drama  of  which  legend  takes  possession.  The  mid- 
dle ages  had  among  ourselves  the  adventures  of 
Gabrielle  de  Vergy  and  of  Aubri  de  Montdidier ; 
later,  the  assassination  of  the  Marquise  de  Ganges 
and  the  poisonings  of  Madame  Brinvilliers  supplied 
stories  for  an  evening.  In  Italy,  and  at  Rome  espe- 
cially, these  atrocities  have  never  been  rare ;  the 
great  school  is  there.  But  nothing  equals  the  inter- 
est, and  nothing  has  counterbalanced  the  renown,  of 
Beatrice  de'  Cenci. 

The  family  was  extremely  rich,  and  in  possession 
of  a  sombre  kind  of  celebrity  of  remote  date  ;  for  it 
boasted  of  counting  in  its  ancestral  stock  Crescentius, 
that  consul  of  whom  Ave  have  just  spoken,  and  who 
took  up  his  quarters  in  the  Castle  of  St.  Angelo, 
where  we  see  the  prison  of  his  descendants.  It  was 
one  of  the  Cenci  who,  being  stationed  on  Christmas 
night  in  the  same  dungeon,  by  Henry  IV.,  while 
Gregory  VII.  was  celebrating  mass  seized  him  at  the 
altar  and  dragged  him  by  the  hair  out  of  the  sanctuary 
to  throw  him  into  a  cell.  These  examples  had  per- 
haps contributed  to  maintain  a  violent  spirit  iii  the 
family,  of  Avhich  the  most  odious  shoot  was,  towards 
the  end  of  the  sixteenth  century,  that  Francesco 
Cenci  who  had  inflicted  on  three  of  his  sons  the 
most  abominable  and  unspeakable  outrages ;  who 
had  the  second  and  the  third  assassinated ;  who  over- 
whelmed his  daughter  and  his  second  wife  with 
ill-usage ;  and  who,  twice  convicted  of  the  most  in- 


THE  STORY  OF  THE  CENCI.  69 

famous  crimes,  escaped  the  penalties  by  bribing  his 
judges. 

Taking  pity  on  the  eldest  among  the  children,  as 
well  as  on  the  eldest  of  the  two  sisters,  the  Pope  had 
rescued  the  sons  from  a  degrading  yoke  and  married 
oif  the  daughter,  at  the  same  time  compelling  Fran- 
cesco to  give  her  a  dower.  Afterwards,  the  young 
children  of  the  monster,  Beatrice  and  Bernardino,  as 
well  as  Lucrezia  Petroni,  their  step-mother,  losing 
the  necessary  courage  to  go  on  bearing  the  ill-treat- 
ment that  lay  so  heavy  on  them,  addressed  to  Clem- 
ent VIII.  a  most  touching  memorial,  imploring  his 
pity  and  protection.  Their  supplication  miscarried 
and  remained  unansAvered,  to  the  despair  of  Lucrezia 
and  of  Beatrice,  who  abhorred  in  her  father  the  dis- 
honorer of  the  family  and  the  murderer  of  her  two 
brothers. 

At  last,  one  night  when  Francesco  Cenci  was  at 
the  quarters  of  the  Colonna,  in  the  castle  of  Rocca  di 
Petrella  in  the  kingdom  of  Naples,  he  Avas  assassi- 
nated by  unknown  hands  and  in  the  most  singular 
manner.  During  his  sleep,  two  enormous  nails  were 
driven  into  his  eyes  with  a  hammer,  a  feat  which  im- 
plied the  co-operation  of  two  accomplices  at  least. 
This  took  place  the  15tli  of  September,  1598.  Lu- 
crezia was  at  once  suspected.  On  the  first  inquiries, 
Guerra,  a  very  handsome  monsignore  Avho  passed  for 
the  chosen  friend  of  the  young  Beatrice,  took  to 
flight,  after  procuring  the  murder  of  one  of  the  two 


70  KOME. 

assassins  whose  tracks  had  been  discovered  and  who 
was  called  OHmpio.  The  other,  named  Marzio,  ar- 
rested and  put  to  the  torture,  dechired  that  he  as  well 
as  his  slain  comrade  had  Leon  hired  by  Jacopo,  Lu- 
crezia,  and  Beatrice  de'  Cenci,  seconded  by  Guerra, 
who,  having  put  their  victim  to  sleep  with  a  narcotic 
draught,  then  introduced  the  two  hravi  into  his  room, 
where  Lucrezia  had  placed  in  their  hands  the  nails 
that  were  to  be  the  instruments  of  vengeance.  After 
that  they  had  given  them  a  thousand  crowns  of  gold. 

At  the  first  rumor  of  these  inquiries,  the  female 
De'  Cenci  returned  tranquilly  with  the  two  sons  to 
their  palace  at  Rome  where  the  Pope  placed  sentinels 
to  hold  them  under  arrest.  Marzio  was  transferred 
to  the  pontifical  prisons,  where  he  repeated  his  dec- 
larations ;  but,  on  being  confronted  with  Beatrice,  he 
was  so  crushed  by  her  reproaches,  her  denials,  and 
the  ascendancy  of  that  marvellous  beauty,  that  he  re- 
tracted all,  and  persisted  thenceforth  in  his  denial 
even  in  the  midst  of  the  tortures  which  at  last  killed 
him. 

It  was  at  this  stage  of  this  extraordinary  trial  that 
a  strange  turn  of  events  was  brought  about  by  an  un- 
expected circumstance.  The  whole  of  Rome  absorbed 
in  the  aftair  Avas  off*ering  vows  for  two  beautiful, 
young,  oppressed  women.  The  recantation  of  Mar- 
zio was  then  all  the  better  received  by  the  judges,  as 
Beatrice  had  endured  the  torture  with  superhuman 
courage,  while  she  protested  her  innocence. 


THE  STORY  OF  THE  CENCL  71 

But  while  the  issue  hung  in  the  balance,  the  police 
arrested  for  some  offence  a  ruffian,  who  was  recog- 
nized as  the  assassin  of  Olimpio,  the  second  murderer 
of  the  count.  The  witness  thus  suddenly  raised  up 
confirmed  the  first  deposition  of  Marzio.  This  story 
charged  the  two  women,  as  well  as  Jacopo  and  Guerra. 
The  whole  family  of  the  Cenci  was  thrown  into  the 
Castle  of  St.  Angelo,  where  the  proceedings  were  re- 
sumed and  slowly  persevered  in. 

Beatrice  de'  Cenci  confronted  for  nearly  a  year  the 
most  acute  tortures  without  a  word  of  confession. 
Such  Avas  the  interest  excited  by  her  courage  that 
even  the  judges  Avere  subjugated  by  the  attractions  of 
her  youth  and  eloquence.  It  became  necessary  to 
take  the  case  from  them  and  to  entrust  it  to  more 
callous  persons.  Her  elder  brother  and  her  mother- 
in-laAV,  their  constancy  worn  out,  then  confessed  ;  the 
young  Bernardino,  a  stranger  to  the  whole  affair  and 
knowing  nothing  of  it,  confessed  all  that  they  Avished, 
in  order  to  escape  from  that  gehenna.  Later  on  his 
innocence  Avas  demonstrated.  Why  should  one  not 
regard  as  acquitted  all  the  Avretches  condemned  on 
their  oaa^i  testimony  thus  extracted  by  torment  !  But 
it  AA-as  in  A^ain  that  they  opposed  to  the  young  heiress 
of  the  Cenci  the  crushing  evidence  of  her  family  ;  she 
persisted  in  the  enthusiastic  declaration  of  her  inno- 
cence. No  threat,  no  torment  A'anquished  her ;  and 
her  tenacity  suspended  the  doom  of  the  accused. 

The  winter  passed  in  this  Avay  ;  Beatrice  was  com- 


72  ROME. 

pared  to  Lucretia,  to  Virginia,  to  Clelia,  Roman 
women  of  the  liei'oic  time,  whose  firmness  she  recalled 
while  she  sm'passed  their  charms.  At  length  one 
day,  in  order  to  apply  some  new  torture,  they  pre- 
pared to  cut  off  her  hair ;  they  were  fair  locks,  the 
most  silken,  the  longest,  the  most  marvellous  in  color 
ever  seen.  Beatrice  grew  pale  ;  she  was  vehemently 
stirred,  and,  repelling  the  executioner,  cried  oiit, 
"  Touch  not  my  head;  let  me  die  without  mutilation!" 

Sad  wage  for  so  much  bravery  !  She  destroyed 
herself  to  save  her  tresses;  and  by  a  full  confession 
confirmed  all  the  deposition. 

They  Avere  all  four  condemned  to  die,  a  decree 
against  Avhich  Beatrice  protested  by  a  fierce  access 
of  indignation  that  found  an  echo  in  every  sovil.  In 
the  city,  in  the  palaces,  even  in  the  cloisters  they 
talk'ed  of  nothing  else.  If  the  valor  of  this  noble  soul 
had  won  for  her  so  much  sympathy,  judge  of  the 
effect  wrought  on  a  population  of  artists  and  poets  by 
the  unforeseen  weakness,  childlike  and  truly  touch- 
ing, by  which  tlie  young  maiden  and  the  woman  had 
betrayed  the  heroine  !  It  was  a  delirium  of  adoration; 
and  Clement  VIII.  was  inclined  to  yield  to  the  cur- 
rent of  feeling,  when,  by  a  second  stroke  of  fate,  one 
Massini  poisoned  his  father.  Other  crimes  of  this 
kind  already  Aveighed  heavily  on  the  nobles;  the  Pope, 
resolved  on  making  an  example,  confirmed  the  judg- 
ment on  the  four  prisoners.  Such  a  sentence,  un- 
doubtedly unjust  so  far  as  it  touched  the  young  Ber- 


THE  STOKY  OF  THE  CEIs^CI.  73 

nardino,  and  of  doubtful  equity,  as  we  must  confess, 
Avitli  reference  to  the  others,  revolted  the  whole  city. 
Cardinals  and  religious  corporations,  magistrates  and 
citizens,  threw  themselves  at  the  knees  of  the  Pontiff, 
urgently  seeking  a  revision  of  judgment.  Clement 
VIII.,  yielding  to  this  request,  supphed  the  Cenci 
Avith  skilful  champions,  Nicolo  de'  Angeli  and  Fari- 
nacci,  and  ordered  the  case  to  be  argued  in  his  pres- 
ence. 

Officially  appointed  to  plead  before  the  Holy 
Father,  the  two  advocates  displayed  irresistible  elo- 
quence ;  recalling  the  abominations  of  Francesco 
Cenci  tAvice  snatched  from  justice,  and  the  probable 
murder  of  his  sons,  Farinacci  argued  that  such  a 
monster  must  have  created  a  host  of  foes  and  stirred 
up  against  him  more  than  one  avenger.  He  had  the 
art  of  convincing  and  softening  to  such  a  degree,  that 
the  Pope  left  the  hearing  profoundly  moved.  Every- 
body then  Avas  in  expectation  of  mercy  Avhen,  third 
fatal  incident !  Avhile  the  case  Avas  yet  pending,  a 
young  Marqtiis  of  Santa  Croce  assassinated  his 
mother.  Did  the  Pope  belicA-e  himself  Avarned  by 
heaven  and  exhorted  to  harshness  ?  In  any  case, 
from  this  moment  he  remained  inflexible  ;  and  having 
pardoned  Bernardino,  Avhose  innocence  Avas  notorious, 
he  gaA'e  the  order  for  hastening  the  execution,  forc- 
ing the  youthful  son  of  the  Cenci  to  look  on  at  the 
butchery  of  his  family.  The  judicial  agony  of  these 
unhappy  souls  had  lasted  a  year. 


74  EOME. 

They  were  to  be  slain  on  the  8th  of  September, 
1599,  but  it  was  the  festival  of  the  Holy  Virgin.  It 
was  Beatrice  who  thought  of  this,  and  who,  that  the 
day  of  the  Madonna  might  not  be  stained  with  blood, 
implored  the  respite  of  a  few  hours — an  act  of  piety 
which  rendered  her  fate  still  more  touching. 

On  the  morning  of  the  9th,  the  Pope  Aldobrandini, 
in  order  to  be  absent  from  the  scene  of  punishment, 
quitted  Rome;  he  passed  before  the  Castle  of  St.  An- 
gelo,  over  the  bridge  that  was  soon  to  be  trodden  by 
the  condemned.  A  pontiff  of  erudition,  the  son  of  an 
illustrious  man  of  letters,  Clement  VIII.  Avas  not  in- 
accessible to  pity  ;  he  only  went  as  far  as  a  convent 
that  was  near  the  walls,  so  that  being  warned  by 
three  discharges  of  cannon  of  the  fatal  moment,  he 
might  absolve  the  poor  creatures  about  to  die.  When 
the  booming  resounded  through  the  air,  the  Pope 
raised  himself;  went  through  the  form  of  plenary  ab- 
solution and  then  fell  back  almost  swooning. 

Had  he  seen  what  Avas  passing  at  the  same  hour  in 
that  section  of  the  piazza  of  the  bridge  of  St.  Angelo, 
lying  between  the  quay  and  the  opening  of  the  streets 
Paolo  and  del  Banco  di  San  Spirito,  what  would  he 
then  have  done,  what  thought  then  of  his  justice  ! 

For  the  punishment  of  these  three  victims,  there 
had  been  organized  there,  under  the  name  of  mmi- 
naja,  a  sort  of  machine  with  a  knife  whose  clumsy 
action  perhaps  retarded  for  two  centuries  the  great 
political  machine  of  1793.     The  heat  was  suffocating; 


The  Castle  of  S.  Angelo 


THE  STOKY  OF  THE  CENCI.  75 

the  sun  poured  down  on  the  crowd  held  in  by  horse- 
men ;  the  carriages  w^ere  croAvded  together  up  to  the 
very  edge  of  the  scaffold  ;  the  three  open  spaces  were 
densely  thronged  ;  from  the  streets,  from  the  piazza, 
from  windows,  from  roofs,  everybody  could  see  ad- 
vancing across  the  bridge  in  front  of  the  huge  and 
massive  dungeon  of  the  Antonines,  the  sinister  pro- 
cession. The  condemned  ascended  the  scaffold, 
which  was  placed  on  the  open  space  before  the  stat- 
ues of  St.  Peter  and  St.  Paul.  Soon  this  crowd, 
which  had  been  already  stirred  to  the  heart  by  the 
youth  and  beauty  of  Beatrice  de'  Cenci,  saw  with  hor- 
ror Lucrezia,  who  w^as  large  and  corpulent,  struggling 
for  shame,  held  down  and  micovered  under  the  hands 
of  the  executioner,  wdiile  the  knife  hacked  her 
throat. 

The  shrieks  of  the  Avretched  w^oman  were  answered 
by  cries  of  horror  from  the  depths  of  the  crowd. 
Whilst  the  rage  of  the  people  directs  iiself  to  the 
scaffold,  and  the  horses  of  the  soldiers  rear  against  the 
carriages,  which  are  thrown  in  their  turn  on  the 
women  and  children  crushed  in  the  shock,  the  execu- 
tioners, dripping  Avith  blood  and  stricken  wdth  con- 
fusion, hasten  to  cut  off  the  head  of  Beatrice  ;  and  as 
Giacomo  de'  Cenci  mastering  with  his  voice  the  tu- 
mult that  surrounded  him,  denounces  the  sentence 
which  makes  their  young  brother  a  witness  of  the  ap- 
palling scene,  bitter  shrieks  answer  him — the  shrieks 
of  Bernardino,  torn  by  convulsions,  and  who  w^as  liur- 


76  KOME. 

ried  away  at  the  moment  Avhen  he  saw  one  of  the 
executioners  raise  a  mass  of  iron  over  Giacomo  and 
strike  him  down  like  an  ox. 

His  body  was  cut  into  four  quarters  in  the  pres- 
ence of  the  crowd  ;  those  of  the  Avomen  remained  ex- 
posed until  nightfall  on  the  bridge  of  St.  Angelo,  and 
after  that,  Beatrice  de'  Cenci,  being-  claimed  by  a  re- 
ligious company,  was  buried  behind  the  altar  of  St. 
Peter  in  Montorio,  at  the  foot  of  the  Transfiguration 
of  Raphael. 

By  her  will,  the  reading  of  which  raised  to  its  height 
the  feeling  of  compassion  that  already  surrounded 
this  heroine,  she  disposed  of  a  part  of  her  property  in 
doAvering  and  marrying  fifty  young  girls.  But  nearly 
all  the  property  of  the  Cenci  was  confiscated,  an  in- 
cident of  condemnations  w^hich  never  helped  to  make 
them  less  frequent ;  by  means  of  this  acquisition  a  few 
years  after,  by  the  wish  of  Paul  X.,  the  domains  of 
the  Cenci  were  given  to  his  nephews.  In  this  way 
one  estate  of  the  condemned  became  the  Villa  Bor- 
ghese,  a  spoliation  which  rendered  this  terrible 
tragedy  yet  more  unpopular. 

A  report  of  the  execution  found  in  the  Vatican, 
and  researches  made  a  few  years  ago  among  the  ar- 
chives of  the  family  by  a  Cenci  Bolognetti,  threw 
light  on  an  event  that  had  been  travestied  in  ro- 
mances and  on  the  stage.  Guerrazzi  alone  is  trust- 
worthy as  to  facts,  but  not  for  the  induction  which  he 
draws    from  them;     his    book    is    declamatory   and 


INTEEIOR  OF  HADRIAN'S  MOLE.  77 

common.*  It  was  under  the  influence  of  this  tragic 
history  that  I  entered  the  Castle  of  San  Angelo. 

Down  the  circuhir  passage,  "which  slopes  spirally 
by  a  gentle  inclination  to  the  foundations  of  the  tower, 
roll  a  cannon-hall ;  it  Avill  disappear  in  the  shadow, 
and  then  continuing  to  roll  on  the  arena  awaken  a 
multitude  of  echoes,  conveying  to  the  ear  with  the 
prolonged  sound  of  thunder  an  impression  of  great 
distance.  In  the  heart  of  the  dungeon  a  lofty  vault 
with  niches  hollowed  out  to  receive  Colossi,  marks 
the  old  Columbarium  of  the  Antonines.  The  solid 
structure  of  this  Roman  catacomb,  smoky  from  the 
torches  which  with  their  tongues  of  resinous  lire  half- 
reveal  its  lines,  gives  it  a  character  aU  the  more  mys- 
terious and  solemn,  inasmuch  as  sounds  are  swallowed 
up  there  just  as  light  is.  The  useless  splendor  of 
mosaics  and  facings  of  Parian  marble  Avas  lavished  on 
this  densely  black  chamber ;  while  in  the  corridors 
was  preserved  by  means  of  a  few  pyramidal  loop- 
holes a  memory  of  the  light. 

The  modern  prisons,  that  is  to  say  those  of  the  last 
three  centuries,  have  been  arranged  in  the  upper 
stories;  they  consist  of  cells,  small  dingy  rooms  sur- 
rounding an  oblong  court,  where  for  the  grandiose 
ferocity  of  absolute  ride  and  arbitrary  power  is  sub- 
stituted the  mean  ugliness  of  a  wretched  social  insti- 

*  The  above  account  differs  in  many  particulars  from  that 
which  appears  in  Beatrice  Cenci  Roniana,  Storia  del  Secolo,  xvL, 
Maccontata  del  D.  A.  A.  Firenze,  quoted  by  A.  J.  C.  Hare. 


78  ROME. 

tution.  You  will  have  shown  to  you  the  dungeons 
of  the  Cenci  and  many  others  ;  you  will  be  invited  to 
shudder  over  prisons  ....  Avhich  are  the  repository 
of  the  archives.  It  is  among  some  pleasant  rooms 
decorated  by  the  school  of  Raphael  that  you  must 
seek  the  chamber  in  which,  by  order  of  Pius  IV.,  was 
strangled  Cardinal  Caraffa,  nephew  of  the  previous 
Pope,  on  the  same  day  on  which  his  brother  Prince 
Paliano  had  his  head  cut  off;  this  room  in  which  an 
old  rancor  Avas  gratified  against  the  nephew  of  Paid 
IV.  is  designated  quite  naturally  Chamber  of  Justice. 
Zuccheri,  Avho  has  there  depicted  the  Virtues  in 
fresco,  has  endowed  that  of  Justice  with  graces  that 
are  perhaps  slightly  deceptive,  while  on  the  doors  and 
walls  of  these  apartments,  decorated  by  order  of  Car- 
dinal Crispo  and  recently  occupied  by  a  French  com- 
mandant, pupils  of  Giovanni  d'Udine  or  Perino  del 
Vaga  have  traced  elegant  arabesques  by  way  of 
frames  for  divers  pieces  of  local  history. 


PECULIAK  CUSTOMS.  79 


CHAPTER    IV. 

When  a  prince  or  princess  of  Rome  dies,  the  body 
is  clothed  in  robes  of  ceremony  and  laid  out  on  a 
state-bed,  beneath  a  canopy,  where  it  remains  ex- 
posed in  the  midst  of  a  constellation  of  tapers  for  the 
benefit  of  the  populace.  You  will  not  be  edified,  as 
in  our  country,  by  the  tender  assiduity  of  the  relatives 
nor  by  their  affectionate  regard  for  the  dying.  At 
Rome,  and  throughout  nearly  all  Italy,  when  a  sick 
person  is  in  extremis,  the  family  flee  from  the  house  : 
a  husband,  a  beloved  wife,  a  father,  a  grandfather, 
dies  abandoned ;  the  last  gaze  meets  only  hired  faces. 
This  custom,  Avhich  speaks  clearly  as  to  the  real  re- 
ligion of  the  people  of  Rome,  has  for  its  origin  the 
rather  pagan  dread  of  being  bewitched ;  they  im- 
agine that  the  dying  have  the  evil-eye.  No  train  of 
friends  and  relatives  goes  to  the  cemetery  ;  the  pro- 
cession— a  procession  of  state  (more  decent  at  Rome, 
however,  than  in  Tuscany,  where  at  night-time,  and 
lighted  by  torches,  the  dead  are  borne  along  so 
swiftly) — is  only  recruited  from  among  the  religious 
orders.  It  is  joined  by  the  servants,  the  carriages 
of  the  defunct,  his  horses  if  he  has  any,  and  his  dogs, 
very  likely,  if  their  inclination  carries  them  thither. 

Nothing  is  lighter  than  the  temperament  of  a  de- 


80  ROME. 

monstrative  and  violent  people.  When  the  Romans 
suffer  affliction,  they  hasten  to  apply  alteratives  and 
drench  the  stomach.  One  day  I  accompanied  a  friend 
to  a  trattoria^  where  the  host  and  hostess  with  two 
marriageable  daughters  Avere  sitting  together.  My 
companion  inquired  the  reason  why  the  house  had 
been  closed  on  the  preceding  evening.  "Alas!"  re- 
plied the  father,  "  they  were  carrying  our  son  to  the 
grave  ;  we  are  deeply  afflicted  !" 

Whilst  my  friend  brings  forward  the  usual  for- 
mulas of  condolence,  there  comes  up  an  apothecary 
with  four  bottles,  which  he  places  in  a  row  upon  the 
table,  and  as  the  father,  the  mother,  and  the  two 
daughters  each  seize  one,  the  landlady  says  to  us,  in 
a  pathetic  tone,  "  One  may  well  take  rimedio  for  such 
deep  grief!" 

They  shake  them  off,  these  deep  griefs,  with  a 
good  deal  of  courage.  I  remember  that  on  the  eve 
of  the  funeral  of  the  father  of  a  family,  I  saw  the 
widow  and  the  two  daughters  all  dressed  up  to  go 
out.  "  Poor  things  !"  said  the  mother  ;  "  they  have 
wept  so  much  that  they  need  some  distraction.  For 
me,  I  only  do  it  on  their  account.   .   .   ." 

She  was  taking  them  to  the  play  ! 

After  Avandering  about  for  a  long  time  without  see- 
ing anything  of  note  in  the  labyrinth  of  alleys  that 
separates  the  Roman  College  from  the  bridge  of  St. 
Angelo  ;  near  the  Via  Sant'  Apollinare,  in  the  alley 
of  the  Maschera   d'Oro,   and   opposite,  if  I  am  not 


POLIDOKO  DA  CARAVAGGIO.  81 

much  mistcaken,  the  Camiiccini  Palace,  chance  made 
me  lift  my  eyes  to  a  sufficiently  sombre  house  and 
disclosed  to  me  a  work  of  art  but  little  known,  which 
I  think  it  my  duty  to  point  out.  The  fa9ade  of  this 
house  is  covered  with  paintings ;  those  filling  the 
spaces  between  the  windows  are  large  figvires,  very 
much  effaced ;  but  below,  a  high  and  long  frieze  rep- 
resents the  fable  of  Niobe,  executed  in  chiaroscuro 
by  Polidoro  da  Caravaggio,  classed  among  the  pupils 
of  Raphael,  but  who  must  have  worked  more  with 
Giovanni  d'Udine  and  Giulio  Romano.  In  love  with 
the  ancient  sculptures,  this  master  delighted  in  deco- 
rations done  in  white  and  black,  Avhich  Avhen  handled 
with  vigor  are  like  bas-reliefs.  His  friezes,  with 
their  brown  and  neutral  tints,  are  like  finely  shaded 
cameos.  The  artist  has  substituted  movement  for 
color  efi"ects.  One  rarely  sees  ancient  figures  grouped 
in  a  succession  of  actions  so  violent,  or  subjects  of 
such  animation  presented  with  more  classic  regidar- 
ity.  This  is  assuredly  one  of  the  best  works  of  Poli- 
doro, and  that  which  gives  the  most  just  idea  of  his 
talents.  Unhappily  this  frieze  has  not  been  engraved; 
it  is  lost  in  a  corner  where  nobody  passes,  and  time 
daily  effaces  more  and  more  of  a  nearly  forgotten 
masterpiece. 

The  chances  of  this  walk  brought  me,  as  I  fol- 
lowed the  Via  di  Tor- Argentina,  behind  the  Pantheon, 
to  a  souvenir  of  a  very  different  nature,  which  did 
not  fail  to  interest  me,  for  I  suddenly  came  upon  the 

6 


82  ROME. 

house  of  one  of  the  most  famous  saints  of  the  Church, 
St.  Catherine  of  Siena,  situated  in  the  Via  de  Santa 
Chiara.  Having  finally  seen  the  object  of  years  of 
fasting  and  prayer  accomplished — the  Papal  throne 
established  at  Eome — and  having  herself  accompanied 
Gregory  XI.  thither,  she  died  at  the  early  age  of  two- 
and-thirty,  worn  out  by  a  life  of  privation  and  toil ; 
and  was  buried  in  the  neighboring  Church  of  Santa 
Maria  sopra  Minerva. 

The  Venetian  Palace,  near  S.  Marco,  is  a  purely 
Florentine  building  and  of  a  fine  epoch.  The  church, 
belonging  to  the  same  period,  has  been  made  young 
as:ain  after  the  Roman  manner.  Both  were  built  in 
1468,  not  by  Giuliano  da  Majano,  as  Vasari  says,  but, 
as  is  proved  from  a  contemporary  chronicle  quoted 
by  Muratori,  by  one  Francesco  di  Borgo  San  Sepol- 
cro.  Mino  da  Fiesole  executed,  they  say,  nearly  all 
the  scidptures :  but  Ave  may  be  permitted  to  doubt  that. 

Pope  Paul  II.,  who  was  Pietro  Barbo,  a  Venetian, 
reconstructed  the  church  that  Gregory  IV.  had  already 
restored  in  833,  and  that  had  been  founded  in  336  by 
the  Pope  St.  Mark  in  honor  of  the  Evangelist  his 
patron.  Paul  II.  could  not  be  content  without  hav- 
ing a  fine  church  freshly  decorated  in  the  neighbor- 
hood of  a  palace  in  which  he  lived,  and  where  after 
him  nineteen  pontiffs  dwelt  more  or  less  ;  it  was  to 
this  natural  desire  that  the  oratory  of  Gregory  IV. 
was  sacrificed,  of  which,  however,  they  respected  the 
tribuna  on  account  of  its  ninth-century  mosaic,  which 


THE  BARBO  PALACE.  83 

has  for  prodella  the  symboHcal  lamb  with  its  twelve 
sheep,  hut  which  is  otherwise  extremely  rude.  The 
portico  of  this  temple  is  graceful,  and  its  doorway 
exquisite. 

A  sermon  had  attracted  a  number  of  women  to  the 
church  ;  it  was  charming  to  see  them  leaning  against 
some  pillar,  their  heads  enveloped  in  a  sort  of  hood, 
their  eyes  uplifted  and  attentive,  like  the  holy  women 
in  an  old  painting.  As  it  is  forbidden  to  the  sex  to 
enter  a  church  bareheaded,  at  Rome,  where  women 
of  every  age  go  out  without  a  head-dress  even  in 
winter,  they  attend  a  mass  or  a  fansione  Avearing 
hoods  made  out  of  their  shawls  or  use  their  handker- 
chiefs for  head-dresses.  This  rule  dates  from  the 
primitive  church  ;  I  believe  even  St.  Paul  says  some- 
thing on  the  subject.  The  Barbo  Palace  cost  the 
friends  of  antiquity^  dear ;  for  its  Avails  Avere  built  of 
materials  plundered  from  the  Coliseum,  Avhich  Avas 
turned  into  a  qixarry.  Charles  VIII.  took  up  his 
abode  there  in  1494,  Avhen  he  Avas  on  his  expedition 
against  the  kingdom  of  Naples.  It  Avas  Pius  lY., 
and  not  Clement  VIII.  (Aldobrandini),  Avho  ceded 
this  residence  to  the  Venetian  Republic,  as  a  rcAvard 
for  having  been  tlie  first  to  acknowledge  the  Council 
of  Trent.  The  Republic  installed  her  ambassadors 
there.  Then  Avhen  the  xVustrians  took  possession  of 
the  Lombardo- Venetian  ])rovinces,  they  annexed  the 
palace  of  Venice  by  right  of  conquest,  and  estab- 
lished their  legation  there.      As  they  had  acquired  it 


84  ROME. 

with  the  territory  of  Venice,  so,  if  I  mistake  not, 
they  ought  to  have  restored  it  when  they  surrendered 
the  province,  for  it  Avas  to  the  diocese  and  state  of 
Venice  that  the  popes  gave  it.* 

Finding  it  necessary  to  take  a  little  rest,  on  reach- 
ing Trajan's  forum,  1  entered  S.  ]\Iaria  di  Loreto,  the 
little  octangular  church,  the  cupola  of  Avhich  Antonio 
of  San  Gallo  ornamented  Avitli  such  a  beautiful  lan- 
tern, and  paid  a  visit  to  the  St.  Susannah  of  Francis 
Duquesnoy,  one  of  the  most  exquisite  statues  pro- 
duced by  the  seventeenth  century. 

The  masterpiece  of  the  estimable  Duquesnoy  re- 
called to  me  that  the  little  church  of  St.  Francesca 
Romana,  at  the  left  of  the  Sacred  Way,  contains  the 
work  of  another  French  artist.  So  I  went  there. 
It  is  not  to  vaunt  the  carvings  designed  by  Bernini 
on  the  tomb  of  Francesca,  a  Roman  lady  of  the  fif- 
teenth century  Avho,  under  the  title  of  Oblates, 
founded  an  order  of  Beguines  in  Rome,  that  I  shall 
mention  this  little  church ;  nor  to  point  out  the  tomb 
of  our  compatriot  Gregory  XI.,  who  re-established 
the  pontifical  see  at  Rome  after  seventy-two  years  of 
exile.  I  shall  content  myself  with  mentioning  some 
interesting  objects  that  people  sometimes  fail  to  see, 
and  of  which  the  guides  say  nothing.  There  is,  to 
begin  with,  behind  the  high   altar   a   mosaic  of  the 

*  The  palace  .  .  .  is  still  the  residence  of  the  Austrian  ambas- 
sador, to  whom  it  was  specially  reserved  on  the  cession  of  Venice 
to  Italy. — Augustus  Hare's  Walks  in  Rome,  p.  85. 


S.  LOKENZO  IN  MIRANDA.  85 

tenth  century,  which  represents  the  Virgin  sur- 
rounded by  four  saints,  separated  from  one  another 
by  arches  and  cohmins.*  In  a  transept  on  the  left 
are  two  pictures  attributed  to  Perugino ;  one  is  of  the 
school  of  Francia,  and  the  other  might  very  Avell  be 
the  work  of  a  rare  master — Gerino  da  Pistoja.f 

Let  us  also  make  honorable  mention  of  a  good 
piece  of  work  of  our  countryman  Peter  Subleyras, 
native  of  Uzes.  It  decorates  the  altar  of  one  of  the 
chapels,  and  represents  St.  Placida  restoring  life  to  a 
child ;  a  very  religious  conception,  of  lofty  aspect 
and  striking  effect ;  Lesueur  might  well  have  put  his 
name  to  it.  The  Louvre  possesses  a  reduced  repro- 
duction of  this  picture,  but  the  idea  of  the  master  has 
become  very  cold  in  it.  I  also  recall  the  beautiful 
equestrian  figure  in  bas-relief  of  a  Paduan  Condot- 
tiere  of  the  fifteenth  century,  whose  tomb  Avas  deco- 
rated by  a  Florentine. 

The  church  of  S.  Lorenzo  in  Miranda  is  built  upon 
a  part  of  the  pagan  temple  of  Antoninus  and  Faus- 
tina, Avith  its  travertine  cclla,  crowned  with  a  frieze  on 
which  griffins  sport,  separated  by  candelabra  and 
vases,  and  whose  columns,  the  greatest  monoliths  of 
cipollino  known,  have  for  diadem  an  entablature  of 
enormous  blocks  of  Carrara.  The  columns  of  the 
hexastyle  are  not  less  than  forty-three  feet  high ; 
under  the  emperors  you  ascended  twenty-one  steps 

*  Kugler  attributes  these  mosaics  to  the  ninth  century, 
t  This  picture  has  been  removed. 


86  ROME. 

to  reach  the  temple ;  these  steps  were  removed  to  St. 
Peter's  m  1540. 

A  little  farther  on  we  come  to  three  high  and 
broad  apses  in  which  the  eye  seeks,  as  if  on  the 
threshold  of  three  caverns,  to  pierce  the  darkness,  and 
which  the  ignorant  call  the  Arches  of  Peace.  The 
remains  of  this  building,  whose  plan  is  not  at  the  first 
glance  intelligible,  are  so  massive  and  thick,  that  we 
should  be  mistaken  as  to  their  height  if  the  people  of 
the  neighborhood,  who  have  worn  a  short  cut  under 
these  naves,  did  not  give  us  so  many  opportunities  of 
comparing  with  the  size  of  the  blocks,  as  well  as  with 
the  scattered  foundations  of  the  fallen  parts,  the  lili- 
putian  proportions  of  a  passer-by. 

The  arches  are  more  than  sixty  feet  in  span  ;  and 
the  weight  of  the  immense  marble  cornices  must  be 
tremendous. 

For  many  years  these  ruins  and  the  mystery  about 
them  tilled  the  popular  imagination.  Some  authors 
since  the  fifteenth  century  have  fancied  that  they 
recognized  in  them  the  Temple  of  Peace  erected  by 
Vespasian :  an  inscription  from  the  Capitol  found  in 
the  neighborhood  gave  rise  to  this  supposition,  which, 
however,  is  no  longer  tenable.  The  character  of  the 
architecture,  the  plan,  which  is  that  of  a  basilica,  the 
testimony  of  the  annalists,  the  marks  stamped  on  the 
bricks  employed  in  the  construction — everything  de- 
notes that  it  is  later,  and  must  be  attributed  to  Maxen- 
tius,  the  rival  of  Constantine. 


BUILDINGS  OF  IMPERIAL  ROME.  87 

In  this  neighborh(iod  the  ancient  city  seems  to  pro- 
long itself  indelinitely.  At  the  bottom  of  a  street  not 
far  from  the  basilica  you  see  in  a  row  the  columns  of 
the  Temple  of  Mars  Ultor,  which  stood  in  the  centre 
of  the  formn  of  Augustus ;  the  adjoining  Avail  is 
pierced  by  an  enormous  arch,  Avhich  goes  by  the  name 
of  Arco  dei  Pantani.  Turning  to  the  right  we  reach 
the  site  of  a  Forum,  sometimes  called  Transitorium, 
from  the  thoroughfare  leading  through  it,  and  some- 
times Forum  of  Nerva,  because  though  begun  by 
Domitian  it  was  completed  by  that  Emperor.  At  the 
corner  of  the  Via  della  Croce  Bianca  is  the  ruin  called 
the  Colonnacce,  the  remains,  according  to  some,  of  a 
temple  to  Minerva  erected  there  by  Domitian,  The 
frieze  has  bas-reliefs  of  charming  execution,  but  much 
damaged.  Below  these  marbles,  these  reliefs,  this 
foliage  of  acanthus  and  laurel,  a  baker  has  his  stall 
and  his  oven. 

Near  this  are  the  triumphal  arches  which  have 
served  as  models  for  so  many  votive  buildings.  Like 
the  custom  of  triumphs,  these  vaulted  arches  are  of 
Roman  origin  ;  the  oldest  was  raised  in  the  year  634, 
two  years  after  the  death  of  Caius  Gracchus,  in  honor 
of  Fabius  Maximus  Allobrogicus,  Avho  had  conquered 
Savoy.  The  three  most  splendid  types  of  this  form 
of  structure  are  found  not  very  far  from  one  another, 
and  on  the  road  along  which  the  triumphs  passed. 

AVhat  a  marvel  is  the  smallest  of  the  three  !  It  is 
that  of  Septimius  Severus,  which  marks  the  old  level 


00  KOME. 

of  the  Forum  at  the  foot  of  the  steps  of  the  Temple 
of  Concord.  It  was  surmounted  by  a  car  Avith  six 
horses,  in  which  the  emperor  was  seen  seated  between 
his  two  sons.  The  dedicatory  inscription  is  pecuUarly 
interesting  from  the  fact  that  one  may  plainly  discern 
the  place  where  Caracalla  substituted  the  words  Oi*Ti- 
Mis  FORTissiMiSQUE  PRINCIPIBUS  for  the  name  of  his 
brother  Geta,  after  he  had  caused  the  latter  to  be  put 
to  death.  The  marble,  hacked,  rough,  ill-polished, 
the  new  characters  cut  in  afterwards — all  this  seems 
of  yesterday. 

I  had  previously  explored,  with  impatient  curiosity, 
the  Arch  of  Titus,  entirely  bared  of  the  castrum  with 
Avhich  in  the  middle  ages  the  Frangipani  had  over- 
loaded it.  What  a  glorious  effect  is  produced  from 
three  or  four  different  points  of  view  by  this  noble 
arch,  Avith  a  single  gateway,  imposing  in  its  ensemble, 
exquisite  in  detail,  and  which,  seen  from  afar,  has  for 
its  principal  decoration  the  fine  letters  of  its  inscrip- 
tion !  We  decipher  it  without  any  trouble  from  the 
end  of  the  Via  Sacra,  from  the  summit  of  which 
against  the  blue  sky  this  splendid  pile  rears  its  enor- 
mous cubes  of  Pentelic  marble  which  glowing  red  in 
the  fires  of  the  sun,  the  shadows  chill  with  a  blue 
grey. 

SENATVS 
POPVLVSQVEEOMANVS 
DIVOTITODIVIVESPASIANIF 
VESPASIANOAVGVSTO. 


ARCHES  OF  TITUS  AND  CONSTANTINE.  89 

On  the  other  face  is  represented  the  capture  of 
Jerusalem  and  the  submission  of  Judeea.  Eighteen 
hundred  years  and  more  have  gone  by  since  Domitian 
dedicated  this  triumphal  arch  to  his  brother  and  to 
their  father  Vespasian.  Divo  Tito  proves  that  the 
work  was  completed  after  the  death  of  Titus. 

In  the  bas-reliefs  of  the  inside  the  spoils  of  the  sub- 
jugated nations  are  rejoresented,  borne  by  legionaries 
wreathed  with  laurel.  We  recognize  the  table  of  the 
shewbread,  which  Avas  of  solid  gold,  the  trumpets  of 
silver,  and  the  golden  candlestick  with  seven  branches 
from  Solomon's  Temple,  whose  form  this  monument 
alone  has  transmitted  to  us.  After  the  tables  of  the 
law  marches  barefooted  in  a  black  robe  the  chief  of 
the  Israelites,  Limon,  son  of  Gioras.  In  point  of  exe- 
cution, in  point  of  delicacy,  and  in  point  of  design, 
these  bas-reliefs,  alas,  sadly  damaged,  are  to  be  classed 
among  the  most  perfect  that  antiquity  has  left  in 
Italy.  They  demonstrate  the  veracity  of  Josephus, 
and  Josephus  attests  the  fidelity  of  the  sculptors.* 

The  arch  of  Constantino  produces  the  liveliest  im- 
pression ;  we  admire  without  analyzing  it.  Perhaps 
it  wants  solidity,  but  it  fascinates  by  its  grandeur, 
and  by  the  harmony  of  its  proportions.  It  is  the 
finest  of  the  three,  exclaim  nearly  all  travellers  ;  yet 

*"....  the  candlestick,  concerning  which  Gregoroviiis  re- 
marks that  the  fantastic  figures  carved  upon  it  prove  that  it  was 
not  an  exact  likeness  of  that  which  came  from  Jerusalem. " — Hare's 
Walks  in  Rome,  p.  167. 


90  KOME. 

scarcely  any  of  them  have  examined  its  details  suffi- 
ciently to  remember  them.  Perhaps  its  chief  defect  is 
the  abuse  of  richness.  It  would  be  impossible  to 
enumerate  here  its  statues,  medallions,  bas-reliefs,  and 
inscriptions,  all  of  which,  comparatively  well  pre- 
served, go  to  make  it  one  of  the  most  interesting 
structures  in  Eome. 


THE  BATHS  OF  CARACALLA.  91 


CHAPTER   V. 

One  of  the  largest  buildings  in  the  Avorld  is  the 
Baths  of  Antoninus  Caracalla,  situated  beyond  the 
Circus  Maximus,  between  the  back  of  the  Aventine 
and  that  of  the  CoeHan,  in  one  of  those  suburbs  Avhere 
fields  and  gardens  flourish  over  the  graves  of  an  an- 
cient quarter.  Confined  in  a  narrow  valley,  measur- 
ing their  height  with  the  elevation  of  the  hills,  these 
Baths  are  the  finest  ruins  in  Rome. 

We  should  have  a  false  idea  of  these  establishments 
if  we  were  to  take  them  literally,  and  think  of  them 
as  having  been  only  luxurious  and  very  perfect  baths. 
The  heating  apparatus  undoubtedly  occupied  a  promi- 
nent place  in  them,  since,  according  to  Olympiodorus, 
the  baths  of  Caracalla  could  supply  warm  baths  for 
sixteen  lumdred  persons  at  a  time.  But  besides  all 
the  baths  of  different  temperatures,  the  chambers 
heated  by  steam,  and  the  basins  and  fountains,  the 
thermfe  contained  scent-shops,  stalls  for  articles  of 
fashion,  buffets  for  refreshments,  kitchens  and  refec- 
tories, peristyles  for  conversation  and  exercise  in  wet 
weather,  libraries  and  reading-rooms,  a  stage  for  the 
performance  of  comedy,  gymnasia  for  athletes,  and  an 
arena  for  running  and  wrestling.     There  were  gath- 


92  EOME. 

ered  and  administered  by  a  nnmerous  staff  of  virtuosi, 
artists,  and  slaves,  all  the  appiu'tenances  for  diverting 
an  indolent  people  and  making  them  forget  the  seri- 
ous aspects  of  life.  There  were  even  picture  gal- 
leries and  museums  of  statues  :  it  was  pleasure  or- 
ganized and  raised  to  the  rank  of  an  institution.  For 
sovereigns  Avho  had  to  maintain  a  power,  as  absolute 
as  it  was  fragile,  over  a  corrupt  populace  in  Avhose 
breasts  not  even  faith  in  their  country  had  survived, 
the  administration  of  public  amusements  on  an  enor- 
mous scale  was  a  political  necessity  of  the  first  con- 
sequence. Thus  the  more  a  nation  abases  itself  and 
grovels,  the  more  important  do  its  pleasures  become. 
The  despots  could  only  maintain  themselves  by  be- 
coming proxenetse.  Continued  by  Heliogabalus,  the 
Baths  of  Caracalla  were  the  most  magnificent  of  all : 
several  thousand  citizens  Avere  there  able  every  day 
to  exhaust  the  varied  cycle  of  the  delights  of  mind 
and  sense. 

The  exterior  buildings  form  a  perimeter  of  4200 
feet.  In  the  court  formed  by  these  buildings  there 
rose  on  Babylonian  vaults  another  edifice  in  several 
stories,  which  was  nearly  700  feet  long  by  450  broad. 
The  Cahdarium,  a  rotunda  lighted  from  above,  can 
only  be  compared  to  the  Pantheon  of  Agrippa,  which 
is  purer  in  its  ornamentation,  but  not  so  bold  in  con- 
struction. What  one  cannot  describe  is  the  imposing 
sight,  morning  or  evening,  of  these  gigantic  walls 
rising  above  foundations  already  plunged  in  shadow, 


The  Basilica  of  S.  Clemente 


THE  BATHS  OF  CARACALLA.  93 

their  lofty  summits  sharing  only  with  the  momitain 
peaks  the  rays  of  the  smi.  A  stair  built  in  one  of  the 
piers  gives  access  to  the  upper  part  of  the  edifice ; 
here  you  can  move  along  a  narrow  path  on  the  edge 
of  an  abyss  within  which  sings  the  rushing  wind. 
The  projection  to  an  immense  distance  of  the  shadow 
reveals  still  further  to  you  the  colossal  size  of  ruins 
that  time  has  converted  into  empty  husks.  Some  of 
the  arches  still  remain  intact — semicircular  bands^ 
airy  bridges  over  which  you  venture  after  repressing 
certain  inclinations  towards  dizziness.  Below  in  the 
courts  and  half-destroyed  chambers  we  still  perceive 
vestiges  of  admirable  mosaic  pavements.  Those  of 
the  exhedra  of  the  gymnasiarchs  are  celebrated,  rep- 
resenting the  portraits  of  victorious  athletes ;  we  shall 
see  them  later  in  a  chamber  of  the  Lateran  Palace. 
On  the  highest  platforms  you  walk  over  other  mosaics: 
these  crests  perched  in  the  clouds  were  the  pavement 
of  an  upper  tier  of  galleries,  porticos,  and  terraces. 

Before  1857,  when  people  wished  to  get  an  idea  of 
a  Constantinian  church  as  it  appeared  in  primitive 
times,  they  chose  St.  Clement.  It  was  known  from 
St.  Jerome  that  a  church  existed  in  Rome  which, 
from  an  early  date,  perpetuated  the  recollection  of  the 
predecessor  of  St.  Anaclete,  and  that  in  417  it  had 
acquired  the  rank  of  a  basilica  when  St.  Zosimus 
pronounced  judgment  in  it  against  Celestius,  who  had 
fallen  into  the  Pelagian  heresy.  St.  Leo  speaks  of 
this  temple  in  a  letter  to  St.  Flavian ;  it  is  mentioned 


94  ROME. 

in  499,  on  the  occasion  of  the  council  which  Symma- 
chus  presided  over ;  St.  Gregory  the  Great,  who  had 
delivered  two  homilies  in  it,  described  the  last  mo- 
ments, under  the  Clementine  porch,  of  St.  Servulus 
the  paralytic.  Adrian  I.  and  Leo  III.,  in  the  eighth 
century,  Leo  IV.  and  John  VIII.,  in  the  ninth, 
did,  as  we  know  from  Anastasius,  the  first  of  them 
restore  the  roof,  the  second  and  third  enrich  the 
church  with  sacred  ornaments,  with  marbles,  and 
above  all  with  paintings,  whose  loss  was  long  de- 
plored. The  last  of  the  four  rebuilt  the  choir,  as  is 
shown  by  his  monogram  which  is  repeatedly  carved 
on  the  glutei  or  balustrades. 

To  support  these  traditions  the  interior  of  the  build- 
ing displayed,  like  so  many  witnesses,  the  grey  gran- 
ite columns  of  its  portico  and  its  pillars  of  cipoUino  and 
of  red  granite  which  separate  the  aisles  and  nave,  and 
which  come  from  the  ruins  of  pagan  temples.  Ancient 
friezes  annexed  to  the  entablatures,  and  inscriptions 
of  the  era  of  the  martyrs  set  in  the  walls,  added  fresh 
proofs  to  this  document  in  stone,  and  when  finally, 
convinced  by  such  striking  evidence,  the  visitor 
yielded  to  the  impression  produced  by  so  venerable  a 
sanctuary,  a  more  attentive  examination  confirmed 
his  convictions.  He  saw  indications  of  the  adaptation 
of  a  primitive  basilica  to  the  ceremonial  of  the  ancient 
liturgy.  There  were  the  court,  the  first  inclosure,  in 
which  the  sub-deacons,  the  minor  clerks,  and  the 
chanters  remained  ;  the  nmhoneSj  with  porphyry  slabs 


CHURCH  OF  ST.  CLEMENT.  95 

contemporary  with  John  VIII,,  in  the  loftier  of  which, 
on  the  left,  the  deacons  read  the  Gospel,  proclaimed 
edicts,  and  denounced  the  excommunicated,  while  the 
other  was  only  used  for  the  Epistle,  which  was  chanted 
by  a  sub-deacon  ;  before  the  passage  to  the  right,  the 
desk,  from  which  the  Jedores  expounded  the  sacred 
writings,  and  where  the  chanters  said  the  Gradual  ^ 
finally,  the  twisted  pillar,  destined  for  the  Easter 
taper,  a  ribbon  of  mosaic  under  a  Corinthian  capital, 
bearing  an  ancient  vase,  decorated  under  Innocent 
IV.  The  sanctuarium  is  equally  convincing  and 
curious,  separated  as  it  is  from  the  naves,  a  usage 
still  preserved  in  the  oriental  churches.  Cut  off  by 
the  ancient  railing  from  the  transept,  the  altar  or  con- 
fession is  covered  by  a  ciborium,  supported  on  slender 
columns  of  violet  marble  ;  in  the  circle  of  the  apse  is 
the  presbyterium,  in  the  centre  of  which  the  chief 
seat  is  raised  by  three  steps — multiplied  proofs  of 
very  great  antiquity. 

Things  were  thus  settled  from  time  immemorial, 
when  some  years  ago  in  raising  a  part  of  the  pave- 
ment for  the  purpose  of  digging  a  well,  the  prior  of 
the  Irish  Dominicans,  to  whom  the  convent  was  given 
by  Urban  VIII.,  discovered,  buried  under  the  present 
church  of  St.  Clement,  the  real  Constantinian  basilica 
that  had  passed  into  a  subterranean  state.  How  could 
one  suspect  that,  far  from  depreciating  the  building 
which  had  been  the  object  of  so  extraordinaiy  a  mis- 
conception, this  discovery  would  soon  give  it  a  triple 


96  ROME. 

value.  As  they  removed  the  earth  with  which  the 
crypts  were  tilled,  they  perceived  by  the  light  of  their 
torches,  the  walls  gradually  peopling  themselves  with 
strange  forms  resuscitated  from  the  darkness.  The 
church  above  was  a  cabinet  of  curiosities,  while  the 
church  underground  is  an  art  gallery,  and  the  only 
one  which  can  by  authentic  pictures  till  up  a  gap  of 
nearly  four  centuries  in  the  history  of  painting. 

Before  enumerating  the  riches  of  either  sanctuary, 
let  us  briefly  relate  how  this  consecrated  building 
came  to  be  for  so  long  buried  and  forgotten. 

During  the  struggle  between  the  Church  and  the 
Empire,  the  Emperor  Henry  IV.,  whom  Gregory 
VII.  had  excommunicated,  having  made  himself  mas- 
ter of  Rome,  where  he  had  installed  an  antipope  in 
the  Lateran  Palace,  the  legitimate  pontiff,  who  Avas 
quartered  in  the  Castle  of  St.  Angelo,  saw  himself 
forced  to  appeal  for  assistance  to  the  Duke  of  Cala- 
bria, who  was  then  in  Greece.  This  Duke,  Robert 
Guiscard,  who  founded  the  school  of  Salerno,  and  avIio 
is  described  to  us  as  a  lettered  prince,  proved  to  be 
the  same  sort  of  friend  to  Pope  Hildebrand  as  a  cer- 
tain bear  in  a  fable  ;  for,  under  pretence  of  aveng- 
ing the  pontiif,  Guiscard  nearly  demolished  the  capital 
of  the  Pontiiical  States.  It  was  particularly  in  the 
quarters  of  the  Coelian  and  the  Esquiline,  which  had 
given  shelter  to  the  emperor,  and  the  Archbishop  of 
Ravenna  thus  intruded  into  the  papacy,  that  the  de- 
structive rage  of  the  Norman  hordes  expended  itself. 


CHUKCH  OF  ST.  CLEMENT.  97 

When  Gregory  VII.  returned  to  the  Lateran  Palace, 
his  eye  wandered  over  a  mass  of  ruins. 

Tlie  edifice  was  then  probably  burned  in  1084,  and, 
as  the  level  of  the  surrounding  soil  had  been  greatly 
raised  by  the  quantity  of  ruins,  when,  four-and-twenty 
years  after,  they  wished  to  rebuild  the  church,  instead 
of  constructing  other  foundations,  they  completed  the 
filling  up  of  the  half-bixried  basilica,  after  taking  the 
pains  to  withdraw  from  it  the  ciborium,  the  panels  of 
marble  and  porphyry  which  separate  the  presbytery 
and  choir,  most  of  the  columns,  and  whatever  else 
could,  without  destroying  the  edifice  underground, 
contribute  to  the  adornment  of  the  new  temple,  while 
perpetuating  the  memory  of  the  old.  The  idea  does 
honor  to  that  Pope  Pascal  who  was  a  Cluniac  monk, 
and  whose  character  Avas  so  amiable  that  Gregory 
VII.,  to  whom  he  had  been  sent  by  his  monastery, 
not  wishing  to  allow  him  to  return  to  Burgundy,  made 
him  Abbot  of  St.  Paul's  and  then  titular  cardinal  of  8t. 
Clement's.  These  authenticated  dates  limit  the  pre- 
sumable age  of  the  subterranean  paintings  of  Avhich 
we  are  going  to  speak,  while  the  exhumation  of  the 
primitive  temple  proves  the  antiquity  of  many  objects 
in  the  upper  church.  Let  us  examine  in  turn  these 
two  sanctuaries  so  entirely  unique  that  both  England 
and  Prussia,  though  Protestant  countries,  have  con- 
tributed tOAvards  the  resurrection  of  the  ancient  edi- 
fice,— a  consohng  sign  of  the  spirit  of  our  epoch. 

The  church  of  St.  Clement  is  situated  between  the 
7 


98  EOME. 

Coliseum  and  the  church  of  St.  John  Lateran.  You 
enter  on  the  left  from  a  narrow  street  of  monastic 
quiet,  a  heavy  porch,  rude  of  aspect  though  "svith  fine 
columns  that  do  not  match,  and  of  such  primitive  sim- 
plicity that  Ave  wonder  if  it  may  not  have  seen  Pope 
Liberius  pass.  The  atrium  is  connected  with  a  quad- 
riporticus,  the  arches  of  which  rest  on  ancient  col- 
umns with  Ionic  capitals.  A  side  door  gives  access 
to  the  monastery,  and  here  you  must  ring  if  the 
church  is  not  already  open.  The  homely  exterior 
does  little  to  prepare  one's  mind  for  a  rich  church 
with  naves  and  aisles,  and  whose  various  parts  and 
their  arrangement  according  to  primitive  rites  carry 
the  mind  back  to  the  morrow  of  the  catacombs.  Even 
certain  marks  of  barbarism  contribute  to  this  result. 
At  what  time,  to  level  the  unmatched  columns  of  the 
atrium,  could  they  have  taken  it  into  their  heads,  in- 
stead of  shortening  the  shafts,  to  saw  off  the  capitals 
in  the  middle  ?  Robert  Guiscard,  who  destroyed  so 
well,  built  better,  for  he  made  the  cathedral  of  Salerno. 
Althoug-h  this  church  was  restored  under  Innocent 
III.  and  Innocent  IV.,  under  Eugenius  IV.,  under 
Sixtus  v.,  and  more  dangerous  still  under  Clement 
XL,  still  the  works  of  the  early  period  have  such  a 
preponderance  that  these  partial  discords  are  lost  in 
the  general  harmony.  The  marble  walls  of  the  an- 
cient choir,  with  their  Byzantine  crosses,  their  plaited 
crowns,  their  untwined  serpents,  and  their  frames  of 
glittering  mosaic  ;  the  ambones  of  so  ancient  a  form, 


MOSAICS  OF  ST.  CLEMENT'S.  99 

the  ciboiniiin,  the  inscriptions,  the  funereal  symbols 
of  antiquity  mixed  with  the  bas-reliefs  of  the  pagan 
era,  that  profusion  of  marbles  of  every  age  and  every 
color,  would  suffice  of  themselves  to  lend  extraordi- 
nary interest  to  this  edifice.  But  it  possesses  other 
and  greater  riches  than  these.  In  the  tribune  above 
the  presbytery,  which  was  completed  in  the  beginning 
of  the  twelfth  century  by  Cardinal  Anastasius,  mystic 
figures  issue  from  the  darkness  of  legend  and  of  the 
ages, — the  whole  of  this  portion  of  the  church  being 
one  immense  piece  of  mosaic,  executed  in  the  time  of 
Jacopo  da  Turrita,  that  is,  in  the  revival  which 
crowned  the  thirteenth  century.  Time  has  mellowed 
the  fresh  crudities  of  the  marbles,  and  cooled  the  too 
glowing  warmth  of  the  gold  of  the  mosaic  ;  and  these 
elements  of  what  would  have  been  an  incongruous 
splendor  have  gained  an  intensity  which  Avraps  them 
in  charm  and  mystery. 

Below  the  decorations  of  the  apse,  where  the  cross 
rises  from  a  vine  Avhich  forms  a  sort  of  frieze,  are 
arranged  in  two  processions  on  each  side  of  the  Lamb, 
who  has  a  golden  nimbus  and  is  placed  in  the  centre, 
the  Twelve  Sheep  whom  he  bade  follow  him,  and  Avho 
eye  him  with  an  interrogatory  expression.*  Under 
the  entablature  are  frescoes  of  Christ  with  his  mother, 
surrounded  by  the  twelve  disciples,  separated  from 
one  another  by  as  many  palms.     This  decoration,  due 


*  Usually  called  the  thirteen  lambs. 


100  KOME. 

to  Celano,  belongs  to  the  fourteentli  century.  On 
the  rood-arch  are  certam  apocalyptic  figures  in 
mosaics  of  the  twelfth  century,  with  floating  draperies 
spread  forth  like  clouds.  We  recognize,  over  Bethle- 
hem and  Jerusalem,  Isaiah,  Jeremiah,  St.  Laurence, 
St.  Paul,  St.  Clement,  and  St.  Peter ;  Urban  Vm. 
introduced  St.  Dominic.  To  the  right  of  the  altar, 
beneath  a  pilaster,  is  a  ravishing  tabernacle  of  mosaic 
and  sculpture  in  the  Gothic  style  of  the  Pisans,  a  gem 
that  Cardinal  Tomasio  of  the  Minor  Brothers  had  exe- 
cuted in  1299,  "to  please  the  city  of  Rome  and  his 
uncle,  Boniface  VIII." 

In  one  of  the  chapels  of  St.  Clement  is  the  marble 
statue  of  St.  John  the  Baptist,  one  of  those  living 
representations  of  asceticism  and  penance  that  no  one 
dared  approach  but  the  supple  and  vigorous  Dona- 
tello,  Avith  all  his  contempt  for  the  traditions  of  an- 
tiquity. This  figure  is,  however,  attributed  to  Simon, 
brother  of  that  distant  forerunner  of  Michael  Angelo. 
The  upper  church  also  contains  two  Florentine  tombs 
of  the  fifteenth  century,  of  admirable  workman- 
ship, especially  that  of  Cardinal  Reverella.  Votive 
inscriptions  exhumed  from  the  catacombs  speak  from 
the  walls  and  recall  to  one's  mind  ancient  and  romantic 
names  that  seem  to  have  been  gleaned  from  the  poets. 

Few  heroes  of  legend  are  better  vouched  for  by 
history  than  St.  Clement  the  Roman.  He  figures  as 
the  third  on  the  list  of  pontiffs ;  we  know  that  he 
travelled  with   St.   Paul,  who,  in  his  Epistle  to  the 


LEGENDS  OF  ST.  CLEMENT.  101 

Philippians,  designates  him  as  one  of  his  fellow- 
laborers,  whose  names  are  written  in  the  book  of  life ; 
his  namesake  of  Alexandria  compares  him  to  the 
apostles,  and  Rufinus  speaks  of  him  in  the  same 
terms ;  the  Christian  annals  commemorate  his  re- 
straining influence  from  the  time  of  the  first  troubles 
which  disturbed  the  church  of  Corinth,  and  we  have 
on  this  point  decisive  testimony,  namely,  two  epistles 
in  Greek  and  Latin  from  Clement  to  the  faithful  of 
Corinth,  the  first  of  which  is  perhaps  the  most  ancient 
example  (after  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles)  of  Christian 
.  letters  in  the  first  century.  The  Fathers  of  the  third 
and  fourth  centuries  inform  us  that  St.  Clement  was 
the  first  to  despatch  missionaries  to  the  Gauls ;  our 
Lorraine  annalists  even  pretend  that  he  visited  them, 
and  St.  Clement  possesses  his  local  legend  in  the  dio- 
cese of  Metz  5  in  fine,  it  is  believed  that  he  was  mar- 
tyred at  the  time  of  the  third  persecution  under  the 
Emperor  Trajan.  But,  in  spite  of  these  elements  of 
publicity,  the  origin  of  the  blessed  Clement  has  re- 
mained doubtful,  and,  on  a  point  Avhich  is  of  high  im- 
portance in  clearing  up  the  history  of  the  foundation 
of  our  basilica,  three  versions  have  been  current,  the 
most  accredited  of  which,  although  accepted  by  his- 
tory, is  the  only  one  that  can  be  damaged  Avith  real 
evidence.  According  to  Allen  Butler,  the  orthodox 
theologian  of  Northampton,  all  the  biographies  at- 
tribute to  Clement  the  Roman  a  Jewish  origin,  rest- 
ing on  the  fact   that  in   the  first  of  his  letters  to  the 


102  EOME. 

Corinthians  he  declares  himself  son  of  Jacob.  Now 
twice  have  I  read,  not  only  the  famous  epistle,  but 
all  of  St.  Clement  that  is  left  to  us,  without  finding 
in  it  any  trace  of  such  a  statement,  which  indeed 
could  not  fail  to  be  very  perplexing.  According  to 
the  same  biographer,  this  son  of  Jacob  must  have 
had  the  name  Faustinus,  Avhich  is  not  a  very  Semitic 
designation. 

The  second  tradition,  which  has  always  been  widely 
believed  in  Rome,  is  that  St.  Clement  belonged  to  the 
Flavian  race,  and  that  he  had  at  the  foot  of  the 
Coelian,  among  other  family  possessions  in  the  neigh- 
borhood of  the  Vespasian  amphitheatre  a  palace  in 
which  after  his  conversion  he  built  an  oratory.  Let 
us  observe,  for  this  is  an  essential  point,  that  many 
churches  and  the  majority  of  tlie  early  Christian  com- 
munities were  actually  instituted  in  this  way.  Quite 
recent  excavations,  to  which  discoveries  made  at  St. 
Clement's  gave  an  impidse,  disclose  under  each  of  the 
ancient  churches  the  substruction  of  an  oratory  or 
chapel,  made  usually  with  indifferent  material  and 
fixed  in  the  solid  walls  of  the  palace.  The  new  con- 
vert, if  he  was  a  proprietor  or  great  lord,  received 
his  clients  or  neophytes  in  the  chapel  of  the  house, 
where  they  met  for  grave  discussions,  and  where 
Levites  found  shelter ;  then  on  his  death  the  master 
bequeathed  to  his  brethren  this  embryo  of  a  church 
and  community.  All  the  churches  of  the  first  cen- 
tury which  were  not  built  over  the  burying-place  of 


GENEALOGY  OF  ST.  CLEMENT.      103 

a  martyr  were,  I  would  venture  to  affirm,  established 
in  this  w^ay. 

Now  some  remains  of  a  palace  adjoin  the  old  sub- 
terranean basilica  of  St.  Clement,  and  communicate 
with  it.  Even  below  the  crypt  two  deeper  chambers 
have  been  found,  and  in  one  of  them  they  believe 
they  recognize  the  primitive  oratory.  The  masonry 
of  the  building  beneath  indicates  a  construction  an- 
terior to  the  second  century  ;  in  some  places  it  is 
mixed  with  large  bricks,  materials  that  Averc  em- 
ployed even  before  Romidus,  as  is  shown  by  the 
ramparts  of  Arezzo,  referred  to  by  Vitruvius.  These 
buildings  have  settled  over  heavy  stonework  of  Etrus- 
can construction,  as  to  which  one  cannot  be  mistaken. 
Such  circumstances  show  that  the  founder  Avas  a  per- 
sonage of  mark,  possessing  a  palace  in  Avhich  he  al- 
lowed himself  the  luxury  of  a  chapel ;  and  what  com- 
pletes the  proof  is  that  Clement  I.,  not  having  died  at 
Rome,  whither  his  remains  did  not  come  until  the 
ninth  century,  the  church  cannot  have  had  his  tomb 
for  its  origin.  However,  as  there  is  no  justification 
for  believing  that  Clement  the  Roman  sprang  from  the 
Flavian  house,  we  may  suppose  that  his  first  biogra- 
phers confounded  our  hero  Avith  Clement  of  Alexan- 
dria, Avho  was  called  Titus  Flavins  Clemens. 

The  third  version  of  this  genealogy,  and  the  only 
one  that  is  supported  by  writings  of  proved  anticpiity, 
attributes  to  the  third  of  the  popes  a  Roman  and 
patrician  origin.     It  is  compatible  with  the  preceding 


104  KOME. 

statementSj  as  Avell  as  with  the  enormous  popularity 
of  the  saint ;  for  it  would,  in  fact,  be  nearly  without 
example,  and  it  is  a  melancholy  remark  to  make,  as 
it  applies  to  all  time — it  would  be  most  improbable 
for  so  much  popular  renown  to  attach  itself  to  a  poor 
man  and  a  plebeian  name. 

It  is  not  without  an  emotion  above  ordinary  curi- 
osity that  you  prepare  in  one  of  the  low  aisles,  while 
the  guides  are  lighting  their  torches,  to  descend  from 
the  church  Avhere  so  many  historical  objects  have  en- 
tranced you,  to  a  building  of  a  yet  more  venerable 
antiquity,  in  whicli  time  has  displaced  nothing  on  the 
evil  pretence  of  restoring  or  beautifying.  We  are 
sure  that  these  torches  will  illumine  corridors  in  Avhich 
St.  Augustin,  St.  Sylvester,  and  St.  Gregory  the 
Great,  made  their  voices  heard ;  Ave  know  that  for 
eight  hundred  years  no  eye  beheld  this  sanctuary,  in 
which  Gregory  VIL  was  the  last  to  officiate. 

When  Pascal  II.  rebuilt  San  Clemente,  he  only 
left  in  the  lower  church  some  marble  pilasters  and  a 
few  columns,  Avhich  still  mark  the  separation  of  the 
aisles.  The  rough  casting  of  the  walls  has  peeled 
off  in  many  places  so  that  we  see  the  irregular  layers 
of  a  building  formed  for  the  most  part  of  inferior 
materials,  mixed  w4th  others  of  much  greater  an- 
tiquity. As  soon  as  the  torches  cease  to  wave  in 
front  of  you,  the  surroundings  disclose  themselves. 
We  perceive  that  time  and  damp  have  Avrought  much 
destruction,  causing  the  pozzuolana  to  fall  away  from 


WALL  PAINTINGS  OF  ST.  CLEMENT'S.         105 

the  facings ;  but  whole  pages  have  remained  all  but 
untouched  ;  whatever  is  not  destroyed  has  preserved 
the  freshness  of  its  coloring.  The  general  appear- 
ance from  this  point  of  view  suggests  the  mosaics  of 
Ravenna,  I  would  even  say  the  early  frescoes  of 
the  Campo  Santo  at  Pisa,  if  the  use  of  cruder  colors, 
of  ochres  especially,  which  make  deep  reds  and  yel- 
lows, did  not  give  to  these  pictures  a  more  truly  an- 
tique simplicity  of  aspect.  As  for  the  design,  it  has 
in  general  more  suppleness  of  movement ;  in  the  less 
ancient  portions  the  composition  is  more  freely  pict- 
uresque than  we  find  it  under  the  hand  of  the  con- 
temporaries of  Ducci  and  Giotto. 

Let  us  now  proceed  to  a  rapid  inspection  of  these 
most  interesting  relics.  First  come  two  life-size 
heads,  one  on  a  kind  of  island  of  plaster  of  consider- 
able thickness,  the  other  on  a  piece  of  very  light 
rough-cast,  which  permits  the  stones  to  be  seen 
through  it.  The  first  represents  a  woman,  true  type 
of  the  Roman  matron,  Avith  black  eyes,  and  eyebrows 
deeply  arched  under  a  low  brow.  This  face,  framed 
in  a  nimbus,  seems  to  belong  to  the  end  of  the  fourth 
century,  and  it  recalls,  though  the  execution  is  more 
advanced,  the  processes  used  in  the  frescoes  of  the 
catacombs.  The  other  resembles  them  still  more 
closely  ;  it  is  the  portrait  of  a  man,  with  the  bust 
draped  in  the  Roman  fashion  ;  short  hair  frames  the 
brow,  which  is  low,  the  nose  is  extremely  aquiline, 
the  chin  salient  and  broad,  the  eyes  finely  drawn,  the 


106  KOME. 

mouth  accentuated,  and  the  head  joined  to  the  shoul- 
ders by  a  well-set  neck.  This  fresco  is  made  by  a 
succession  of  tones  laid  one  over  the  other  and  form- 
ing flat  tints,  a  process  which  characterizes  also  the 
likenesses  in  the  catacombs.  The  woman  is,  perhaps, 
one  of  those  whom  St.  Paul  speaks  of  as  having 
labored  with  him  in  the  Gospel,  as  Avell  as  Clement, 
or  Domitilla,  whom  he  converted.  As  for  the  man, 
it  would  be  difficult  to  hazard  any  theory.  Still,  it 
may  be  said  that  in  the  opinion  of  those  most  com- 
petent to  judge,  this  head,  which  is  of  a  style  and 
sweep  purely  Roman,  can  scarcely  have  been  painted 
later  than  the  year  310.  The  vir  togatus  permits  us, 
therefore,  to  attribute  to  this  portion  of  the  church  an 
origin  anterior  to  Constantino. 

The  most  ancient  fragments,  though  sadly  mutil- 
ated, that  we  next  find  in  the  northern  aisle  date  from 
the  eighth  century,  and  represent  Christ  in  the  act  of 
blessing,  and,  on  one  of  the  piers,  Christ  liberating 
Adam  from  hell.  On  the  walls  of  the  left  aisle  are 
some  frescoes  representing  scenes  from  the  life  of  the 
holy  monk  Libertinus,  recounted  by  S.  Gregory  in 
his  dialogues.  He  tells  hoAV  the  monk  charged  a  ser- 
pent to  watch  the  vegetables  of  the  monastery  of 
Fondi,  which  a  robber  used  to  come  and  carry  off 
every  night  by  scaling  the  walls.  The  serpent  seized 
with  his  coils  the  foot  of  the  offender,  and  hissed 
loudly  by  way  of  summoning  Libertinus,  who  un- 
bound the  captive,  and   authorized  him  in   order  to 


LEGENDS  OF  ST.  LIBEKTINUS.  107 

avoid  sin  to  come  henceforth  to  the  house  for  the 
fruit  of  which  he  had  need.  This  Libertinus  Avas  of 
such  humility  that,  after  being  beaten  by  his  superior, 
he  presented  himself  before  him  with  as  much  sAveet- 
ness  as  if  nothing  had  happened,  and  the  abbot  was 
so  moved  that  he  prostrated  himself  before  the  simple 
brother,  and  besought  his  forgiveness.  One  day  as 
Libertinus  was  entering  Ravenna,  a  Avoman  took  his 
horse  by  the  bridle,  and  forced  the  monk  to  come  and 
bring  to  Hfe  again  the  child  that  she  had  just  lost. 
These  legends,  preserved  in  the  Avritings  of  St.  Greg- 
ory, while  evidently  painted  subsequently  to  his  death 
in  604,  may  have  been  executed  less  than  a  century 
after,  under  Gregory  II.,  who  Avas  a  Savelli  and,  I  be- 
lieve, titular  cardinal  of  this  church,  for  the  popes  gladly 
commemorated  anything  connected  with  the  canon- 
ized predecessor  Avhose  name  they  bore.  These  fres- 
coes, in  great  part  destroyed,  may  have  been  ex- 
ecuted between  715  and  730,  for  they  recall  pretty 
closely  the  Vatican  manuscripts  of  the  same  epoch. 
I  think  that  I  can  still  detect  the  traces  of  an  art 
peculiar  to  the  West  in  two  paintings  placed  side  by 
side,  Avhich  seem,  if  not  of  different  periods,  to  have 
been  executed  at  any  rate  by  tAvo  artists  of  very  un- 
equal talent.  On  a  part  of  the  Avail  are  represented 
Christ  on  the  Cross,  and  some  points  in  the  life  of 
Jesus  referring  to  the  resurrection,  the  redemption, 
and  the  eucharist,  symbolized  by  the  Holy  Women 
at  the   Tomb,  by  Adam  taken  from  Limbo,  and  by 


108  ■  KOME. 

the  Miracle  of  Cana.  These  paintings  are  weak,  and 
Avithout  much  action,  while  the  drawing  of  the  Christ 
on  the  Cross  is  barbarous. 

The  neighboring  compartment,  evidently  executed 
as  an  exposition  of  doctrine,  is  more  remarkable :  it 
is  the  oldest  known  representation  of  the  Assumption 
of  the  Virgin.*  Round  the  tomb  the  apostles  express 
their  stupefaction  by  their  faces  and  their  varied  and 
energetic  attitudes.  Covered  with  an  ample  cloak, 
slightly  lifted  by  her  extended  arms,  with  eyes  raised 
to  the  sky,  where  she  beholds  her  son  seated  in  the- 
midst  of  four  angels  and  surrounded  by  an  ellipsoid 
nimbus,  the  Madonna  rises  from  the  earth.  The 
scene  is  full  of  life  and  movement,  and  in  strong  con- 
trast to  the  spirit  of  Byzantine  immobility. 

These  compositions  pronounce  against  the  heresies 
of  the  Pelagians  and  their  errors  touching  grace,  the 
holy  sacrament,  original  sin  and  the  divinity  of  Christ. 
Close  by  they  have  introduced,  armed  with  his  Chron- 
icle and  his  Poems  against  the  deniers  of  grace,  St. 
Prosper,  who  came  from  Marseilles  at  the  invitation 
of  St.  Leo  the  Great  to  fight  by  the  side  of  Augustin 
against  the  Pelagians.  In  order  the  better  to  show 
the  intention,  at  one  of  the  extremities  of  the  picture 

*  The  Ascension,  sometimes  called  by  Eomanists  (in  prep- 
aration for  their  dogma  of  1870)  "the  Assumption  of  the  Vir- 
gin," because  the  figure  of  tlie  Virgin  is  elevated  above  the  other 
apostles,  though  she  is  evidently  intent  on  watching  tiie  retreat- 
ing figure  of  her  divine  son." — Hare,   Walks  in  Home,  p.  281. 


THE  L(1\\'KR  CTU'RCII  OF  ST.  CLEMENT.       109 

of  the  Assumption  they  pkee  St.  Vitus,  Archbishop 
of  Yienne,  who  had  destroyed  certain  analogous 
errors.  He  forms  a  pendant  to  the  iUustrious  Pope 
Leo  IV.,  a  Roman  of  old  time,  who  resisted  the 
Saracens,  who  fortified  Rome,  constructed  the  walls 
around  the  Leonine  city,  and  made  great  restorations  in 
the  church  of  St.  Clement.  The  square  green  nimbus 
surrounding  his  head  is  supposed  to  be  a  sign  that,  at 
the  time  it  was  painted,  he  was  still  living.  Leo  IV., 
who  Avas  canonized,  had  this  fresco  executed ;  the 
stiif  and  curious  inscription  that  informs  us  on  this 
point  shows  us  Latin  prosody  in  decay ;  it  also  serves 
to  prove  the  age  of  the  paintings  : 

QUOD  HJEC  PR.E  CUNCTIS  SPLENDET  PICTURA 

DECOEE,  COMPONEEE  HANC  STUDUIT  PR.ESBYTER 

ECCE  LEO. 

One  can  have  no  hesitation  in  connecting  with  the 
same  period  a  large  fresco,  of  which  all  is  obliterated 
save  two  groups  of  heads  symmetrically  arranged. 
Among  the  thirty-two  figures  of  the  left  group  are 
several  women,  some  of  them  almost  beautiful ;  above 
that  on  the  right  are  represented  scales  Avith  two 
equally  balanced  dishes,  and  the  Avords,  Staterani 
anget  modiitm  justum,  taken  from  an  epistle  of  St. 
Clement.  This  is  a  A'cry  old  instance  of  a  Aveight 
and  scales ;  but  the  baptistery  of  Constantia,  the 
daughter  of  St.  Helen,  furnishes  another  example 
much  older,  engraved  at  the  head  of  an  inscription. 


110  ROME. 

In  a  niche  in  the  right  aisle  is  a  Madonna  with  a 
diadem  loaded  with  stones  or  drachms  ;  she  is  painted 
in  full  face,  her  eyes  fixed  in  front  of  her,  her  son 
below  also  in  full  face,  and  with  that  sphinx-like  im- 
mobility to  which  the  artists  of  this  period  invariably 
condemned  their  figures.  To  right  and  left  are  two 
saints,  of  Avhom  we  only  see  that  the  heads  are  equally 
mummified ;  above,  in  a  medallion,  the  Christ,  beard- 
less and  draped  as  in  primitive  times,  belongs  to 
another  probably  earlier  hand.  Below  the  lateral 
figures,  tAvo  subjects  from  the  Sacrifice  of  Abraham 
form  pendants  to  one  another. 

St.  Cyril,  the  Philosopher,  brother  of  St.  Methodius, 
discovered  the  remains  of  St.  Clement,  and  they  were 
transported  to  Rome  by  Nicholas  I.,  that  is,  between 
858  and  869 — this  return  of  a  patrician  martyr  to 
his  home  after  seven  centuries  of  exUe  gave  a  new 
impulse  to  the  Avorship  of  the  saint,  some  episodes  of 
whose  life  are  represented  in  the  interesting  frescoes 
of  the  eleventh  century,  to  be  found  on  one  of  the 
pilasters  of  the  nave.  The  central  division  shows  us 
a  church  lighted  by  seven  lamps,  answering  to  the 
seven  gifts  of  the  Spirit ;  the  lamp  which  surmounts 
the  altar  on  Avhich  the  missal  and  the  chalice  are 
placed  itself  consists  of  seven  flames  arranged  in  a 
circular  lustre.  The  artist  has  chosen  the  moment 
when  St.  Clement,  who  is  officiating,  with  the  pallium 
on  his  shoulders  and  wearing  a  chasuble  falling  to  a 
point,  turns  round  with  extended  arms  to  chant  the 


CONVERSION  OF  SISINIUS.  Ill 

pax  domlni  sit  semper  vobiscum,  and  when  the  pagan 
Sisinius,  the  friend  of  Domitian,  drawn  to  the  tem- 
ple by  a  maUgnant  curiosity,  becomes  blind  and  deaf; 
his  steps  are  uncertain,  and  a  young  attendant  much 
marvelling,  leads  him  forth.  The  pious  wife  of  the 
courtier,  Theodora,  beholds  what  has  happened  with 
a  surprise  that  has  nothing  painful  in  it.  The  dea- 
cons and  bishops,  placed  on  the  other  side  of  the  altar, 
present  the  givers  of  the  fresco,  who,  in  elegant  ap- 
parel and  beai'ing  crowns,  are  less  than  half  the  size 
of  the  chief  personages  of  the  drama ;  an  inscription 
below  gives  us  their  names  : 

EGO  BENO  DE  RAPIZA  CUM  MARIA  UXORE  MEA 
PRO  AMORE  DEI  ET  BEATI  CLEMENTIS. 

The  space  being  too  short  to  continue,  the  follow- 
ing characters  have  been  placed  vertically  over  one 
another  mider  the  last  letter  of  dementis:  P.  G.  R. 
F.  C.  They  offer  by  far  the  most  singidar  method 
of  abbreviation  that  I  think  I  ever  met  with,  the 
initials  of  each  syllable  being  included,  PinGeBeFeCi. 
Elsewhere  the  same  formula  in  all  letters,  beginning 
with  ego  Beno,  etc.,  ends  with  fecit — Ego  .  .  .  fecit. 
This  is  Latin  in  extreme  decay. 

But  the  subject  treated  beneath  presents  philolog- 
ical curiosities  of  a  different  sort.  Sisinius  havine 
commanded  his  attendants  to  strangle  Clement,  they 
bind   and   drag   along  the   shaft  of  a  column  which, 


112  ROME. 

thanks  to  a  miracle,  tliej  mistake  for  tlie  saint.  The 
latter  having  escaped,  is  only  represented  by  his  part- 
ing words,  pronounced  as  he  crosses  the  portico  on 
which   the   painter   has   written :   "  DIIEITIAM  CORDIS 

\T:STRIS  {sic)    .    .    .    SAXA  TRAERE  MERUISTI."       The  twO 

attendants  of  Sisinius,  who  struggle  to  draw  the 
column,  are  named  Cosmaris  and  Albertel.  The  first 
pulls  the  cord  over  his  shoulder,  the  other  has  it  under 
his  arm  ;  "  Albertel  trai,"  says  the  legend,  written 
over  his  head,  "  Albertel  draws."  Trai  is  no  longer 
Latin,  but  belongs  to  vulgar  idiom.  On  the  side 
whence  the  saint  has  fled,  a  person,  probably  of  his 
suite,  and  named  Colopalo,  shakes  the  base  of  the 
shaft  with  a  stick,  he  looks  at  the  attendant,  who 
stands  at  the  other  end,  and  flings  some  Avords  at  him 
that  are  Avritten  thus  :  "  falitedereto."  To  dis- 
cover the  sense  of  this  queer  group  of  syllables,  I 
think  Ave  must  divide  it  into  four  words,  Fali  fe  de 
reto!  and  translate  it  by  this  ironical  phrase,  "Cheat 
thyself  by  this  delusion !"  It  is  Italian,  badly  adapted 
from  Latin  forms  ;  de  reto,  instead  of  dl  rete,  is  ex- 
plicable, by  a  propensity  of  the  decline  to  assimilate 
the  forms  of  the  second  declension  to  most  "substan- 
tives. That  the  inscription  is  in  Italian  is  shown  by 
the  one  placed  as  a  pendant,  and  as  to  Avhich  there 
can  be  no  uncertainty,  but  it  is  too  rude  to  repro- 
duce. In  the  central  composition  the  costumes  are 
Greek ;  a  certain  unity  presides  over  the  whole, 
and  the  heads  are  far  from  being  inexpressive.     The 


EARLY  FRESCOES  AT  ST.  CLEMENT'S.         113 

figure  of  Theodora  in  especial  is  graceful,  well  draped, 
supple,  and  of  a  handsome  cast. 

We  see  again,  in  the  continuance  of  this  legend, 
all  the  family  of  Beno  de  Rapiza,  at  the  bottom  of  the 
representation  of  the  miracle  which  took  place  before 
the  submarine  grave  of  St.  Clement,  Avhen  a  widow 
finds  there  her  child,  who  had  been  forgotten  at  the 
festivities  of  the  previous  year.  Below  the  fresco,  in 
a  great  medallion,  is  the  pontiff,  to  whom  Beno,  his 
son  Clement,  his  daughter  Atila,  his  wife  Maria,  and 
the  grandmother  of  the  children,  bring  each  a  taper 
and  crowns.  These  are  priceless  studies  of  costume. 
In  another  medallion  is  this  prayer  in  barbarous 
Latin,  arranged  in  the  shape  of  a  cross  : 

ME  PRECE  FERENTES  ESTOTE  NOCIVA  CAVENTES. 

The  upper  subject,  destroyed  as  on  the  previous 
panel,  represented  the  construction  of  the  tomb  by  an 
angel,  as  the  half-preserved  inscription  shows.  As 
for  the  principal  picture,  the  arrival  of  the  clergy  of 
Kherson,  with  the  bishop  at  their  head,  to  witness 
the  miracle  of  the  child  found  safe  and  sound,  the 
work  is  very  remarkable,  as  much  on  account  of  the 
architecture  of  the  little  temple  in  which  the  altar  ap- 
pears,— the  curtains  of  the  Tabernacle  having  been 
symmetrically  looped  up, — as  by  the  drawing  of  the 
figures,  which  are  reproduced  in  a  double  action.  The 
stooping  mother  first  raises  the  child  extending  its 
arms  to  her ;  then,  standing  upright,  presses  it  to  her 


114  EOME. 

breast,  and  leans  lier  head  tenderly  against  that  of 
her  son.  In  the  latter  group  the  movement  is  so 
faithful,  and  the  draperies  are  of  such  a  style,  that 
this  charming  figure  recalls  the  sculptures  of  Chartres 
and  those  of  Erwin  of  Steinbach  at  Strasburg.  It 
shows  to  an  equal  extent  the  thought  and  intelligence 
of  the  West  applied  to  the  art  of  Byzantium,  and  the 
artists  who  here  reach  this  result  are  two  centuries 
before  Giotto.  The  miraculous  shrine  in  which  the 
scene  transpires  is  covered  with  large  tiles,  like  the 
churches  of  Ravenna ;  without  regard  to  symmetry, 
three  only  of  the  four  arches  have  lamps,  because 
these  lights  symbolize  the  three  divine  virtues.  The 
anchor  that  they  hung  about  the  neck  of  the  pontiff, 
when  he  was  drowned  by  order  of  Trajan,  is  fastened  to 
a  ring  in  the  wall ;  while  the  waves  of  the  sea  peopled 
by  swimming  fish  envelop  the  miraculous  chapel. 

From  the  right  aisle  a  stair  leads  down  into 
the  darkness  of  still  earlier  times — the  apartments 
of  the  Imperial  age  resting  on  Etruscan  substruc- 
tions. Near  by  a  fresco,  of  which  few  traces  re- 
main, depicts  scenes  from  the  life  of  St.  Cyril ;  or 
Constantino  the  Philosopher,  receiving  from  the  Em- 
peror Michael  III.,  called  the  Drunkard,  the  mission  to 
go  and  convert  the  Slavs  and  Bulgarians.  Behind  the 
saint  is,  or  rather  Avas,  for  but  little  is  left,  his  brother 
Methodius.  Close  by  we  perceive  the  King  Bogoris, 
being  baptized  naked  in  a  piscina  in  Avhich  he  is 
plunged  up  to  the  waist.     Let  us  further  remark  two 


EARLY  FRESCOES  AT  ST.  CLEMENT'S.        115 

extremely  curious  pilasters,  which  might  very  well 
date  from  the  time  of  Leo  IV.  On  one  are  repre- 
sented St.  Griles  and  St.  Blasius,  one  above  the  other; 
the  Armenian  bishop,  at  the  prayers  of  a  weeping 
mother,  is  drawing  from  the  throat  of  her  child  a 
thorn  which  choked  it.  It  is  for  this  reason  that,  in 
order  to  be  cured  of  quinsy,  people  go  to  touch  at 
the  church  of  Santa  Maria  in  Via  Lata  the  relic  of 
the  throat  of  St.  Blasius.  Below  is  a  kind  of  devour- 
ing wolf,  which  is  carrying  off  a  creature  and  scratch- 
ing it  Avith  its  whiskers.  The  two  subjects  are  sepa- 
rated by  a  design  taken  from  the  acanthus,  and 
inspired  by  the  ancient  arabesques.  On  the  other 
pilaster,  St.  Antoninus  the  Martyr,  of  the  time  of 
Diocletian,  has  beneath  him  Daniel,  whose  feet  two 
lions  of  a  heraldic  make  are  licking,  twisting  them- 
selves into  strange  postures.  The  prophet,  who  was 
minister  to  the  kings  of  Babylon,  wears  the  gay  and 
half-warlike  costume  of  the  young  Byzantine  lords  of 
the  ninth  century.  A  broad  belt  is  over  the  surcoat ; 
the  breastplate  is  trimmed  with  ornaments  ;  the  long 
tight  sleeves  are  fastened  at  the  wrist  by  an  em- 
broidered decoration ;  the  buskins  are  elegant.  In 
the  lower  compartment  struggle  five  monsters  that 
might  be  called  man-lions,  three  of  them  erect  on  their 
hind  feet  try  to  devour  Daniel,  opening  formidable 
jaws.  The  ornamentation  below  is  in  exquisite  taste, 
consisting  of  curves  which  meet,  enclosing  rosettes 
between   denticidated   cinctures.     What   would  lead 


116  EOME. 

one  to  suppose  that  these  pilasters  are  earlier  than 
the  second  half  of  the  ninth  century  is  that  there  is 
no  question  of  St.  Clement,  and  that  St.  Giles  of 
Nismes  acquired  renown  in  Rome  at  the  end  of  the 
seventh.  Let  us  not  omit  a  composition  entirely 
Greek  and  of  later  date,  Cyril  and  Methodius  pre- 
sented to  Christ ;  the  one  by  St.  Clement,  Avhose 
relics  he  has  brought  back  ;  the  other  by  St.  Andrew, 
the  predecessor  of  Methodius  in  the  apostleship  to  the 
Scythians.  The  Saviour,  draped  in  a  toga,  is  too 
short  by  more  than  a  third  considering  the  size  of 
the  head ;  he  is  blessing  in  the  Greek  manner,  that 
is,  the  ring-finger  bent  under  the  thumb  and  the  three 
others  extended,  a  unique  example  of  the  oriental 
rite  in  the  monuments  of  Rome,  but  not  in  other  parts 
of  the  West,  where  we  meet  it  from  time  to  time  up 
to  the  twelfth  century. 

At  the  bottom  of  the  church  is  a  painting  that  can 
only  be  attributed  to  the  author  of  the  miracles  of  St. 
Clement,  already  described.  It  represents  the  re- 
moval from  the  Vatican  to  S.  Clemente  of  the  remains 
of  St.  Cyril.  The  saint  reposes  with  face  uncovered 
on  a  cafalefto,  covered  by  rich  drapery.  The  clerks 
in  long  robes  have  torches  in  their  hands ;  the  in- 
cense-bearers swing  their  spherical  censers.  In  front 
of  the  altar  of  St,  Peter  is  the  Pope,  who  pronounces 
the  Pax  Domini.  This  pontiff,  Avho  is  Nicholas  I.,  is 
also  drawn  at  the  head  of  the  procession,  with  a  mitre 
or  pointed  tiara,  with  a  single  circle,  on  his  head,  and 


THE  LEGEND  OF  ST.  ALEXIUS.  117 

wearing  a  Avliite  pallium  sprinkled  Avitli  black  crosses. 
At  his  right  walks  Methodius,  the  brother  of  the  de- 
ceased, in  deep  sorrow.  The  two  saints  and  the 
Eastern  clergy  wear  the  beard,  while  the  Roman 
ecclesiastics  are  shaven.  Behind  the  cross-bearer  of 
the  Pope  rise  banners  of  stuff  sprinkled  with  gold, 
surmounted  by  the  Greek  cross.  Under  the  frieze, 
which  is  framed  by  two  inscriptions,  we  learn  that 
"  Maria  the  butcher's  wife  (Marcellaria)  for  the  rever- 
ence of  God  and  the  healing  of  her  soul  has  had  this 
drawn."  Here,  then,  in  religious  buildings,  long  be- 
fore the  development  of  the  monasteries  and  the  im- 
pulse given  by  Franciscans  and  Dominicans,  here  we 
find  works  of  art  due  to  the  munificence  of  the  Roman 
citizens.  We  may  conclude  from  this  that  through- 
out the  middle  ages  the  commune  preserved  a  certain 
strength,  and  that  the  middle  classes  had  gathered  up 
the  spoUs  of  the  fallen  patriciate.  Nothing  is  truer ; 
it  was  not  until  the  end  of  the  tenth  century  that  civil 
discords  brought  Rome  to  ruin,  sacked  and  destroyed 
property,  and  extinguished  for  two  hundred  years  and 
more  the  intellectual  lights  which  had  begun  again  to 
shine  forth. 

On  a  pier  in  the  nave  are  represented  the  princi- 
pal points  in  the  legend  of  St.  Alexius.  They  occupy 
the  space  between  a  ravishing  ornamentation  of 
rosettes  and  compartments  decked  with  flowers  among 
which  birds  move,  and  a  half-destroyed  cornice  on 
which  Christ  figures  flanked  by  the  two  archangels. 


118  KOME. 

Michael  and  Gabriel,  who  swing  censers  and  are  ac- 
companied by  St.  Clement  and  Nicholas  I.  The 
three  acts  of  this  edifying  little  drama  transpire  in 
front  of  the  house  of  the  senator  Eufimianus,  father 
of  the  pilgrim  who  in  his  early  youth  quitted  the 
paternal  roof  to  exile  himself  in  Palestine  ;  the  build- 
ings of  the  palace  occupy  three-quarters  of  the  back- 
ground. Under  a  window,  from  which,  without 
recognizing  him,  his  betrothed,  whom  he  abandoned 
on  the  day  of  their  nuptials,  is  regarding  him,  Alexius, 
having  returned  to  Rome,  with  the  staff  and  wallet 
of  the  pilgrim,  goes  to  meet  the  patrician,  Avho  arrives 
on  horseback  followed  by  an  escort.  Without  being 
recognized  he  offers  his  services  to  his  father,  Avho 
receives  him  into  the  number  of  his  attendants.  This 
figure  is  full  of  life  ;  we  can  see  that  the  young  man 
solicits  humbly  and  entreats  warmly.  The  next 
group  represents  another  scene  enacted  many  years 
later :  The  Pope,  followed  by  his  clergy,  is  coming, 
warned  by  a  voice  from  heaven,  to  release  the  body 
of  a  saint  in  the  house  of  Eufimianus.  They  find  at 
the  door,  resting  on  a  mat,  Alexius,  the  poor  servant 
who  for  seventeen  years  has  dwelt  under  a  staircase 
in  his  father's  palace.  In  his  hands  is  folded  a  writ- 
ing, which  the  pontiff  unrolls  and  reads  before  the 
company  and  the  sorrow-stricken  kinsfolk:  this  forms 
the  third  subject.  The  figures  balance  one  another, 
and  the  scene  Is  so  skilfully  grouped  that  we  seem  at 
first  to  be  looking  at  only  one  subject  cleverly  dis- 


THE  LEGEND  OF  ST.  ALEXIUS.      110 

posed.  The  blessed  one  is  placed  on  a  couch,  covered 
by  a  counterpane  with  alternate  medallions  of  Greek 
crosses  and  doves ;  his  betrothed  hastening  up,  presses 
him  in  her  arms,  Avhile  the  father  and  mother  have 
rent  tlieir  garments  and  are  tearing  their  hair. 

This  picture  fixes  the  date  of  St.  Alexius;  he  must 
have  flourished  under  Boniface  I.,  who  held  the  Roman 
bishopric  from  the  year  418  to  422.  The  name  of  the 
pontiff  is  written  thus  :  JBoniplmiuis.  This  curious 
painting  offers  a  very  singular  example  of  the  pro- 
sodical  decomposition  of  Latin  verse,  and  of  the  tran- 
sition from  scanned  rhythm  to  syllabic  and  rhymed 
rhythm.  The  events  traced  by  the  painter  are 
summed  up  in  these  two  hexameters  : 

NON  PATEK  AGNOSCIT,    MISERERIQUE  SIBI 

POSCIT; 
PAPA  TENET  CARTAM,   VITAMQUE  NUNTIAT 

ARTAM. 

Thus  the  church  of  vSt.  Clement,  a  museum  of 
archffiology  in  its  upper  story,  a  gallery  of  paintings 
unique  over  the  whole  Avorld  in  its  crypt,  furnishes, 
besides  examples  of  certain  little  known  schools,  pre- 
cious specimens  of  Latin,  or  Italian,  as  it  existed 
towards  the  end  of  the  age  of  Charles  the  Great. 
And  it  also  throws  a  vivid  light  on  the  origin  of  the 
first  basilicas,  on  the  rites,  usages,  and  costumes  (tf 
the  obscurest  epochs,  and  on  the  antiquity  of  certain 
legends. 


120  BOME. 


CHAPTER    VI. 

As  you  enter  the  city  by  the  gate  of  St.  Pancras 
the  sound  of  falling  Avater  announces  the  vicinity  of 
the  Pauline  Fountain ;  that  huge  erection  whose  or- 
namentation seems  designed  solely  to  form  a  setting 
for  the  inscriptive  tablet,  Avhich  is  perhaps  the  most 
gigantic  in  the  world.  As  the  fountain  stands  nearly 
on  the  top  of  the  Janiculum,  you  can  discern  this 
page  of  writing  from  a  great  distance,  framed  in 
marble  vignettes,  below  which  are  six  columns  of  red 
granite  taken  from  the  Forum  of  Nerva ;  the  osten- 
tatious style  of  the  seventeenth  century  triumphs  here 
by  its  size.  Paul  V.,  restoring  life  to  the  aqueducts 
of  Trajan,  and  injecting  Lake  Bracciano  into  their 
arteries,  did  not  mean  it  to  enter  Rome  in  poor  guise; 
below  the  arms  of  the  Borghese  there  rush  forth 
brawling  from  three  open  gateways  three  currents, 
and  from  two  neighboring  niches,  pretty  streams. 
Dragons  spout  forth  other  streams.  These  masses 
of  water,  so  unexpected  on  the  bare  summit  of  a  hill, 
and  pure  as  the  crystal  streams  of  the  Alps,  pour 
down  into  a  vast  marble  basin.  There  Avas  once  here 
a  Temple  of  j\Iinerva.  This  Nympheum,  a  monu- 
ment to  the  liberal  foresight  of  the  popes,  connects 


Finding  the  Body  of  S.  Cecilia 


THE  CHUECH  OF  ST.  CECILIA.  121 

their  power  nobly  enough  with  the  secular  history  of 
the  emperors,  by  making  the  memory  of  Ti-ajan 
flower  again  among  the  younger  buds  of  the  Bor- 
ghese.  The  construction  does  honor  to  Fontana  as 
well  as  to  the  sculptor-architect,  Stephen  Maderno. 

We  find  this  last  artist  again  at  the  foot  of  the 
Janiculum  in  a  very  different  and  perhaps  more  orig- 
inal work.  After  skirting  the  base  of  the  hill  towards 
the  south,  leaving  to  the  right  the  Franciscan  con- 
vent in  Avhich  dwelt  St.  Francis  of  Assisi,  and  fol- 
lowing the  suburban  street  in  which  the  great  St. 
Benedict  stayed  in  the  sixth  century,  Ave  finally  enter 
the  church  of  St.  Cecilia. 

The  authenticity  of  the  legend  of  the  virgin  martyr 
has  been  called  in  question,  owing  to  her  execution 
having  been  placed  under  Alexander  Severus  who 
did  not  persecute  the  Christians,  and  attributed  to  one 
Almacus,  a  pretorian  prefect  unknown  to  history. 
Signer  de, Rossi  has,  however,  shown  the  error  of  the 
Bollandists  on  this  point,  and  confirmed  the  statement 
of  Fortunatus,  avIio  places  the  martyrdom  of  St.  Cecilia 
under  Marcus  Aurelius.  The  place  of  her  burial 
shows  the  family  from  which  she  sprang ;  but  these 
are  points  to  which  we  shall  return  when  Ave  reach 
the  catacombs. 

The  church  of  Cecilia,  Avhich  gives  his  title  to  a 
cardinal,  is  thought  to  have  been  built  by  Urban  I. 
toAvards  the  year  230,  on  the  site  of  the  saint's  dAvell- 
ing.     They  show  you  in   one  of  the  chapels  to  the 


122  KOME. 

right  the  remains  of  the  baths  of  her  house,  and  on  a 
lower  story  some  fragments  of  the  original  pavement. 
Pascal  I.  who  rebuilt  the  temple  respected,  as  they 
had  done  in  the  third  century,  the  remains  of  the 
furnace,  where  we  recognize  pipes  for  heat  and 
water.  Clement  VII.  presented  St.  Cecilia  to  the 
Benedictine  Sisters ;  Clement  VIIL,  in  1579,  had 
opened  the  sarcophagus  of  their  patron,  the  body  of 
whom,  intact  and  masked  by  the  folds  of  a  long  robe, 
was  disclosed  in  an  expressive  and  singular  attitude, 
and  this  exhumation  occasioned  one  of  the  finest 
statues  that  was  executed  in  the  beginning  of  the 
seventeenth  century.  The  Pope  was  desirous  that 
the  saint  shoidd  be  represented  in  the  vestments  and 
the  position  in  which  they  had  surprised  her,  and  the 
task  was  confided  to  Stephen  Maderno.  This  curious 
little  temple  rises  in  front  of  an  apse  of  the  ninth 
century,  in  which  a  mosaic  has  preserved  to  us,  be- 
sides a  portait  of  Pascal  I.,  the  figures  of  St.  Cecilia 
and  her  husband  Valerianus,  in  the  costume  of  the 
patricians  and  Roman  ladies  ten  years  after  the  death 
of  Charles  the  Great.  The  saint  wears  a  white 
mantle  over  a  tunic  of  green,  Avith  a  golden  border ; 
the  robe  and  the  peplum  are  of  golden  stuffs,  and 
richly  overwrought.  Flowers  are  scattered  on  their 
way  ;  by  their  side  palm-trees  laden  with  fruit  sym- 
bolize the  merits  of  martyrdom,  while  over  one  branch 
is  the  haloed  phoenix,  the  emblem  of  resurrection. 
At  some  distance  from  the  church  St.  Cecilia,  and 


SANTA  MARIA  IN  TRASTEVERE.  123 

at  the  end  of  the  Lungaretta,  rises  the  principal 
church  on  the  right  bank  of  the  Tiber,  Santa  Maria 
in  Trastevere.  It  is  said  that  on  this  spot  there  was 
erected  under  the  first  emperors  a  Taberna  meritoria, 
a  sort  of  army  hospital ;  and  that  this  institution, 
having  been  abandoned  at  the  time  of  Caracalla  and 
Heliogabalus,  no  doubt  because  the  number  of  crip- 
ples became  too  great,  the  building  was  ceded  to  the 
Christians  by  Alexander  Severus,  M'ith  permission  to 
found  an  oratory  there,  a  project  that  Avas  realized 
about  the  year  221  by  the  pope,  St.  Callistus.  An- 
terior by  nearly  a  century  to  the  era  of  Constantine, 
Santa  Maria  in  Trastevere  ought  to  be  the  oldest 
church  in  Rome,  and  perhaps  in  the  West.  What  is 
certain  is  that  Pope  Jidius  I.  rebuilt  this  temple  at 
an  epoch  when  assuredly  there  was  no  other  to  re- 
construct (349),  and  that  before  1140  Innocent  II. 
substituted  for  the  monument  of  Pope  Julius  the 
present  church,  which  is  one  of  the  prettiest  in  Rome, 
and  one  of  the  most  interesting  from  the  point  of 
view  of  art  and  archaeology. 

The  fa9ade  is  decorated  with  a  mosaic  of  the 
twelfth  century,  an  epoch  not  often  represented  at 
Rome.  There  is  a  Madonna  in  the  Byzantine  style, 
and  around  her  in  a  line  are  the  Wise  Virgins,  lamp 
in  hand,  with  crowns  and  haloes.  The  Foolish  Vir- 
gins, dressed  in  the  oriental  manner,  and  whose  varied 
attire  is  very  rich,  also  carry  lamps :  but,  instead  of 
holding  them  reversed,  they  keep  them  upright,  a 


124  EOME. 

departure  from  traditional  usage  due  to  the  restora- 
tions of  the  seventeenth  century,  Avhich  Avere  ex- 
ecuted by  an  ignorant  worker  in  mosaic*  Below 
these  mosaics  is  a  portico  whose  Avails  are  covered 
with  ancient  inscriptions.  Entering  we  find  the  nave 
divided  from  the  aisles  by  two  avenues  of  granite 
columns,  with  capitals  of  various  orders,  on  some  of 
which  are  carved  the  heads  of  Harpocrates  and 
Jupiter  Serapis.  It  is  probable  that  these  magnificent 
shafts  formed  part  of  the  reconstruction  of  Pope 
Julius,  for  they  Avould  scarcely  have  left  such  splen- 
did materials  unused  down  to  the  time  of  Innocent 
II.  One  might  deliver  an  admirable  lecture  in  this 
spot  on  mosaics ;  facade  and  apse,  high  altar  and  holy- 
water  vessels,  representing  among  them  the  periods 
from  the  twelfth  century  to  the  fifteenth ;  Avhile  those 
in  the  choir,  depicting  scenes  from  the  Life  of  the 
Virgin,  by  Pietro  Cavallini,  seem  to  me  to  occupy 
the  very  first  rank.  There  are  even  tAvo  ancient 
mosaics,  let  into  a  pier,  of  birds  and  some  fishermen. 
The  paintings,  too,  coA'er  an  equally  extended  cycle, 
from  some  Giottesque  frescoes  to  the  Assumption  of 
Domenichino,   Avhich  gloAvs   among  the   gold  of  the 


*  "  On  each  side  are  advancing  ten  female  saints,  eight  of  whom 
are  distinguished  as  martyrs  hy  their  basins  with  streaks  of  blood. ' ' 
These  are  generally  taken  for  the  wise  and  foolish  virgins  because 
their  basins  or  bowls  have  somewhat  the  form  of  lamps. — Kug- 
ler,  Hand-book  of  Painting,  p.  95,  and  note  by  Sir  Charles  East- 
lake. 


SANTA  MARIA  IX  TRASTEVERE.  125 

ceiling.  Passing  over  many  charming  details  which 
one  might  naturally  expect  to  find  in  a  church  re- 
modelled by  Bernardo  Rossellini  in  the  time  of  the 
good  Nicholas  V,,  the  friend  of  Fra  Angelico,  Ave  will 
mention  the  chapel  at  the  end  of  the  left  aisle  con- 
taing  a  fresco  by  Zncchero,  representing  the  Council 
of  Trent,  closed  by  Pius  IV. — an  official  painting,  in 
which  likenesses  and  ceremony  have  been  reproduced 
with  all  conscientiousness,  but  in  which  conscience 
has  added  nothing ;  curiosities  do  not  always  arouse 
admiration.  In  the  centre  of  the  tribune  is  placed — 
as  in  basilicas — a  massive  cathedra  of  Avhite  marble. 
Finally  I  must  mention  a  tomb  of  the  fourteenth  cen- 
tury by  Paolo  Romano  ;  which  tomb,  though  nearly 
ignored,  contains  the  remains  of  a  prince  of  the  house 
of  France,  the  Cardinal  d'Alenyon,  brother  of  Philip 
the  Fair. 

This  is  one  of  those  churches  from  which  every- 
body can  glean  something  of  interest ;  the  pavement 
of  Alexandrine  work  contributes  to  its  air  of  opulence. 
They  have  just  finished  doing  it  over,  but  I  rejoice 
at  having  seen  it  before  it  became  so  magnificent.  I 
remember  that  trying  to  go  oiit,  and  having  mistaken 
the  entrance  to  the  sacristy  for  a  door,  I  observed  in 
a  passage  some  small  tabernacles,  on  one  of  which 
?ome  very  charming,  but  little-known,  bas-reliefs  are 
signed  Opus  Mini  ;  for  those  who  have  studied  Flor- 
ence— a  very  necessary  preparation  for  a  journey  to 
Rome — the  name  of  Mino  da  Fiesole  is  enrolled  upon 


126  ROME. 

the  banner  of  Ghiberti,  between  those  of  Fra  An- 
gelico  and  the  della  Robbia. 

One  of  the  most  interesting  pilgrimages  from  the 
Trastevere  is  up  that  slope  of  the  Janiculum  whose 
gardens  overlook  the  city,  and  where  stands  the 
monastery  of  Sant'  Onofrio,  the  scene  of  the  agony 
of  Tasso. 

As  soon  as  one  sets  foot  in  the  little  church  of  Sant' 
Onofrio,  the  comic  element  puts  all  sentimental  yearn- 
ings to  rout.  The  monument  to  Torquato  Tasso, 
erected  by  subscription  under  Pius  IX.  in  1857,  does 
more  honor  to  the  sentiments  of  the  Holy  Father  than 
to  the  talent  of  Giuseppe  De  Fabris,  to  whom,  for 
want  of  somebody  better,  no  doubt,  they  had  to  con- 
fide its  execution.  His  bas-reliefs  and  his  figure  of 
Tasso  are  of  a  smooth,  scraped,  and  pomaded  style, 
and  a  taste  quite  extraordinarily  laughable.  Close  to 
the  door  is  the  ancient  burying-place,  where  under  a 
modest  stone  had  slept  for  nearly  three  centuries  the 
author  of  Jerusalem  Delivered,  at  the  foot  of  a  portrait 
of  the  time,  which  is  bad  enough,  but  which  may  be 
a  likeness. 

In  the  passage  of  the  monastery,  where  one  loves 
to  wander  in  the  footsteps  of  the  poet,  there  is  a  little 
fresco  representing  the  Virgin  and  Child,  blessing  a 
donor  at  prayer.  The  picture  is  arched,  and  is  sur- 
rounded by  a  frame  of  flowers  and  fruit  on  an 
enamelled  ground,  a  rude  imitation  of  Andrea  della 
Robbia.     The  donor's  portrait  in  profile,  the  infant 


SANT'  ONOFRIO.  127 

Jesus  softly  modelled  with  a  charming  gesture,  the 
delicate  sweep,  and  lofty  brow  of  the  smiling  Madonna, 
all  reveal  and  proclaim  Leonardo  da  Vinci,  to  whom 
this  precious  jewel  is  justly  attributed.  Leaving  it 
we  ascend  to  the  room  in  which  Tasso  ended  his  sad 
and  glorious  life. 

The  chamber  is  well  placed.  What  Tasso  looked 
upon  in  his  last  dreams,  we  see  to-day  just  as  he  left 
it.  Leaning  on  the  Avindow  where  tlie  lover  of  Leo- 
nore  d'Este  leaned,  we  behold  with  rapture  that  scene 
that  he  beheld  with  such  gloom.  The  chamber  is  to- 
day almost  as  it  was  when  he  exchanged  it  for  the 
vault  of  Sant'  Onofrio,  only  an  occasional  pale  mark 
on  the  walls  shows  where  some  object  once  hung  that 
has  now  disappeared.  But  in  the  main  the  aspect  is 
the  same  ;  there  is  the  poet's  table,  Avith  an  inkstand 
of  wood,  his  great  chair  covered  with  Cordovan 
leather,  very  worn,  a  small  German  cabinet,  a  mirror, 
an  autograph  letter,  a  large  bowl,  a  crucifix.  There 
may  also  be  seen  the  original  of  a  mask  in  Avax, 
moulded  from  nature,  the  copies  of  which  known 
abroad  have  become  much  effaced.  The  monks  have 
placed  this  mask  on  a  clothed  bust,  producing  thereby 
a  most  fantastic  effect.  The  head  is  delicate,  of  a 
peculiarly  spiritual  beauty,  and  of  a  fascinating  ex- 
pression ;  the  purity  of  the  profile  and  the  firmness 
of  the  mouth  heighten  the  distinction  of  the  poet's 
face.  As  in  the  church,  however,  so  here  the  bad 
taste  of  our  contemporaries  grates  upon  our  feelings. 


128  EOME. 

A  Neapolitan,  who  surmounted  the  new  tomb  of  Tor- 
qi;ato  with  shocking  frescoes,  took  it  into  liis  head  in 
1864  to  pay  scant  reverence  to  his  chamber,  and  to 
play  havoc  with  its  hallowed  associations  by  painting 
on  the  plastered  wall  a  life-size  figure  of  Tasso,  done 
in  a  deceptive  way  so  as  to  cause  surprise  to  Boeotians; 
this  piece  of  caricature  is  not  even  copied  from  the 
authentic  head.  We  could  not  restrain  ourselves 
from  protesting  against  such  fatuity,  and  the  good 
brother  who  accompanied  us  thought  he  was  well  out 
of  it  by  assuring  us  that  the  artist  had  painted  the 
thing  for  nothing.  How  is  it  that  this  piece  of  in- 
decency has  not  been  scraped  out  already  ?* 

Between  the  southern  slope  of  the  Capitoline  Hill 
and  the  Fabrician  bridge,  near  the  Piazza  Montanara, 
you  come  upon  one  of  the  finest  specimens  of  the 
best  period  of  architecture,  the  theatre  dedicated  by 
Augustus  to  the  young  Marcellus,  his  nephew. 

Such  is  the  perfection  of  this  monument  that  the 
Doric  and  Ionic  columns  of  the  two  lower  tiers  have 
been  adopted  by  later  architects  as  models  of  propor- 
tion. An  enormous  fragment  of  this  building  is  still 
standing,  the  Pierleoni  and  the  Savelli  having  used  it 
as  a  fortress  in  the  middle  ages. 

Skirting  the  wall  of  the  theatre  of  Marcellus,  you 

*  In  the  course  of  some  recent  repairs  this  figure  which  in 
however  questionable  taste  it  may  have  been  was  certainly  most 
striking,  has  been  whitewashed  over.  It  is  shown  in  the  accom- 
panying illustration. 


Tasso's  Room  at  S.  Onofrio 


PORTICO  OF  OCTAVIA.  129 

proceed  to  lose  yourself  in  the  region  of  the  Pescheria 
Vecehia,  only  to  come  suddenly  upon  a  fresh  memento 
of  Augustus  in  the  shape  of  a  once  splendid  colonnade. 
Octavius,  who  had  dedicated  to  the  son  of  his  sister 
the  neighboring  tlieatre  begun  by  Julius  Cajsar,  placed 
under  the  patronage  of  Octavia  this  new  portico, 
which  embraced  the  older  temples  of  Jupiter  and 
Juno.  Within  the  portico  is  the  little  church  of  St. 
Angelo  in  Pescheria,  crowned  by  a  covered  belfry.  It 
was  from  here  that  Cola  de  Rienzi,  on  the  20th  of 
May,  1347,  after  hearing  mass,  came  forth  escorted 
by  his  adherents  and  the  Vicar  Apostolic,  to  ascend 
to  the  Capitol,  where  the  populace  whom  he  had  con- 
voked conferred  upon  him  the  lordship  of  the  Roman 
Republic.  Situated  in  a  poor  quarter  and  surrounded 
by  every  kind  of  incongruous  building  these  ruins  of 
antiquity  are  connected  on  all  sides  with  buildings 
dating  from  the  seventh  to  the  thirteenth  century. 
At  the  south  angle  a  brick  arch  replaces  two  of  the 
columns,  a  repair  probably  dating  from  the  early  part 
of  our  era  ;  of  the  neighboring  columns  two  are  stand- 
ing, one  of  them  half-buried  in  masonry,  the  other  a 
fine  piece  crowned  with  acanthus ;  beyond  is  a  pilaster 
stripped  of  its  marble  facings.  The  principal  effect 
of  these  ruins  is  made  by  the  contrast  between  the 
grandeur  and  magnificence  of  the  antique  style,  and 
the  picturesque,  sordid,  and  hopeless  squalor  of  a 
neighborhood  that  since  the  middle  ages  has  been  oc- 
cupied by  the  Jews  and  the  Fish  Market. 

9 


130  ROME. 

Turning  the  corner  of  the  portico  and  passing  under 
a  low  arch,  you  suddenly  come  out  at  the  head  of  a 
deep,  narrow  street,  the  houses  of  which,  dark  and  of 
unequal  height,  are  made  yet  more  obscure  by  pent 
roofs  and  clothes-lines  stretched,  as  at  Smyrna,  across 
the  road,  from  which  swing  garments  of  varied  hue. 
These  abodes  exhibit  a  complete  harlequinade  of 
epochs  and  purposes.  The  majority  of  them  have 
been  in  tiirn  palaces,  convents,  oratories,  and  houses  of 
every  sort  of  business,  until  at  last  they  are  become 
garrets  and  dens  for  sheltering  wretchedness.  Every- 
body has  tinkered  at  the  Avails  according  to  his  own 
ideas,  and  such  is  the  quality  of  the  cement  that  a 
square  of  wall  pierced,  stopped,  mined,  torn  away  ten 
times  in  twelve  centuries,  remains  solid  as  a  rock, 
without  there  being  any  need  to  prop  it.  Hence,  be- 
fore each  of  these  facades  made  up  of  pieces  and 
bits,  one  recognizes,  as  on  an  ill-scraped  parchment 
on  which  various  texts  have  followed  one  another, 
the  plan  and  purpose  of  previous  dwellings.  The 
small  Roman  block,  the  remains  of  some  saceUum  of 
the  lower  empire,  will  form  a  kind  of  figured  pattern 
with  the  narrow  bricks  of  the  thirteenth  century  and 
the  large  courses  of  travertine  of  the  fifteenth.  You 
can  see  from  story  to  story  spacious  round  windows 
filled  up  and  replaced  by  tiny  lattices,  which  are  to- 
day in  their  turn  condemned.  Vast  arches  outlined 
in  walls  pierced  by  Avindows  recall  ancient  porticoes. 
A  console  perched  high  among  battered  bas-reliefs,  a 


THE  PESCHEEIA  VECCHIA.  131 

shaft  of  syenite  or  of  African  granite  issuing  from 
these  mosaics  of  masonry,  will  suggest  a  whole  history 
of  vanished  greatness.  Marbles  fouled  with  soot 
mingle  here  and  there  with  the  stucco  of  the  build- 
ings. Casting  furtive  glances  down  some  alley,  you 
will  discover  among  the  filth  of  a  blind  court,  captive 
colonnades  and  the  crumbling  fragments  of  a  palace, 
such  as  those  of  the  Governo  Vecchio,  whose  porti- 
coes are  half-concealed  amid  the  hovels  of  the  Pes- 
cheria.  At  Rome  to  rebuild  they  never  completely 
pidled  doAvn,  and  thus  additions  have  been  made  from 
age  to  age  like  the  cells  of  a  hive.  It  follows  then 
that  in  the  old  quarters  abandoned  to  the  people  you 
can  trace  the  rank  and  read  the  history  of  the  life  of 
the  various  castes  which  from  century  to  century  have 
been  quartered  there.  Even  the  doors  have  been  re- 
cut  or  re-hung ;  marvellous  are  the  lock-fastenings ; 
antique  and  complicated  gratings  will  close  sinks ;  a 
sarcophagus  will  serve  for  a  trough,  a  gravestone  for 
a  doorstep,  while  dirty  water  will  have  for  gutters 
tombs  that  were  contemporary  with  Gregory  VII. 
In  this  way  the  smallest  bit  of  building  may  become 
an  historical  treatise,  but  you  must  inspect  it  close, 
for  too  often  by  dint  of  passing  from  hand  to  hand  the 
letters  have  become  effaced.* 

On  each  side  of  this  curious  street  lie  large  flag- 
stones of  white   marble,  slightly  inclined  like  tomb- 

*  This  quarter  was  demolished  in  1887. 


132  KOME. 

stones,  which,  placed  along  the  foot  of  the  houses, 
assume  towards  nightfall  when  the  street  is  deserted, 
a  most  lugubrious  look ;  it  is  as  though  the  inhabitants 
kept  the  graves  of  their  ancestors  before  their  doors. 
These  blocks  of  Carrara  or  cipoUino,  taken  from  the 
temples  of  the  gods  or  the  inferior  palaces,  serve  as 
stalls  for  the  vendors  of  fish.  When  on  these  tables 
they  cut  up  the  bronze-colored  sword-fish,  sea-eels, 
or  doradoes  with  bluish  gills,  their  blood  mingling  in 
violet  and  rose-colored  Avebs  with  threads  of  carmine 
over  the  delicate  Avhiteness  of  the  marble,  forms 
bouquets  of  color  which  Avould  have  given  delight  to 
a  rival  of  Van  Ostade.  It  was  in  digging  at  the  end 
of  this  street  that  in  the  seventeenth  century  they  ex- 
humed the  Venus  de  Medici  at  the  entrance  of  the 
rione  of  the  Jews,  who  Avith  an  amazing  want  of  thrift 
never  seem  to  have  thought  of  scratching  the  fruitful 
earth  whose  treasures  they  trample  under  foot. 

Rome  allows  the  Israelites  to  keep  open  shop  on 
Sunday,  and  does  not  forbid  Christians  to  make  their 
purchases  in  the  Ghetto  on  that  day,  nor  even  to  go 
and  buy  cigar-ends  by  the  pound,  or  be  shaved  in 
those  open-air  barber  shops,  where  people  await  their 
turn  with  so  much  patience,  at  the  same  time  gather- 
ing from  the  lips  of  the  inexhaustible  Figaro  the  news 
of  the  quarter  and  of  the  two  hemispheres.  To  have 
one's  beard  shaved  is  the  only  toilette  luxury  over 
which  the  Roman's  taste  for  dirt  has  not  triumphed. 

Beyond  the  Ghetto  and  the  Cenci  Palace,  between 


THE  EIGNE  BELLA  KEGOLA.  133 

this  piazza  and  the  Via  de'  Pettinari,  and  bordering 
on  the  Tiber  with  its  deserted  quays  is  a  labyrinth 
of  streets,  stUl  more  curious  than  those  of  the  tribe  of 
the  Hebrews.  From  the  bank  you  see  retreating  in 
perspective,  a  mass  of  habitations,  toppHng  over  one 
another  as  though  driven  by  a  blast  of  wind.  The 
sight  continues  as  far  as  the  Ponte  Sisto,  under 
which  you  may  possibly  discern  a  fisherman  on  the 
watch  before  his  gircUa  stretched  at  the  foot  of  an 
arch.  Penetrating  to  the  principal  street,  which  runs 
parallel  to  the  stream,  but  is  sinuous  with  a  breach 
here  and  there  in  its  line,  we  iind  this  ragged  quarter 
alive  and  noisy  and  filled  with  the  most  incongruous 
objects.  There  are  deep  lanes,  their  entrances  blocked 
by  palaces  without  names,  whose  fifteen  centuries  of 
architecture  are  heaped  one  upon  the  other ;  the 
lemon-tree  and  the  laurel  push  out  from  clefts  in  the 
stone  in  the  midst  of  all  manner  of  filth.  This  quar- 
ter is  called  the  Rione  della  Regola,  and  is  inhabited 
by  tanners ;  the  pungent  odor  of  the  tan  and  the 
hides  mixing  with  the  accustomed  perfume  of  the 
cabbage. 

Not  far  from  this,  on  the  bank  of  the  river  and 
facing  the  piazza  of  8.  Maria  in  Cosmedin,  is  the 
graceful  Rotunda  of  the  Sun  {Mater  Matuta  f  Her- 
cules Victor  f),  dedicated  by  some  modern  archaeolo- 
gists to  Vesta,  a  charming  monument  of  the  age  of 
Trajan,  very  inferior  to  the  more  ancient  marvel  of 
Tivoli,  but  still  attractive  in  spite  of  having  lost  its 


134  KOME. 

original  roof  and  entablature.  To  save  this  pagan 
altar,  instituted,  they  say,  as  far  back  as  the  time  of 
Numa,  it  was  placed  by  the  popes  under  the  protec- 
tion, first  of  S.  Stefano  delle  Carrozze,  and  later  of  St. 
Mary  of  the  Sun.  In  the  centre  of  the  piazza  is  a 
fountain,  in  the  midst  of  which  by  order  of  Clement 
XL  Carlo  Bizzaccheri  placed  high  and  dry  upon  a 
rock  two  sirens  by  Moratti,  not  of  a  very  dangerous 
beauty. 

The  southern  side  of  the  piazza  is  occupied  by  the 
porch  of  Santa  Maria  in  Cosmedin.  It  is  often  said 
that  Pope  Adrian  I.,  in  reconstructing  this  church, 
which  was  of  Constantinian  origin,  enriched  it  with 
an  ornamentation  so  splendid  that  it  retained  the  sur- 
name, in  Cosmedin,  from  xdtr/itx;^  decoration  or  orna- 
ment ;  but  this  designation  is  older  than  the  year 
780.  Santa  Maria,  standing  between  the  Aventine 
and  the  Palatine,  and  at  the  end  of  the  street  Bocca 
della  Verita,  occupies  the  site  of  an  ancient  temple  of 
Ceres  and  Proserpine  rebuilt  by  Tiberius.  We  can 
still  distinguish  a  portion  of  the  Cella  in  some  large 
blocks  of  travertine,  as  well  as  in  twelve  white  mar- 
ble columns,  some  of  which  are  built  into  the  walls 
of  the  choir.  The  pavement  is  Alexandrine  work  of 
the  richest  and  oldest  sort ;  the  ambones  of  the 
eleventh  century  were  adorned  in  the  thirteenth  by 
some  rows  of  mosaic  j  behind  the  high  altar  is  placed 
the  cathedra,  possibly  dating  from  the  eighth  century  ; 
it  was  here  that  Pope  Gelasius  11.  and  the  anti-Pope 


S.  MARIA  IN  COSMEDIN.  135 

Gregory  VIII.  were  proclaimed :  the  high  altar  is 
surmounted  by  a  ciborium,  supported  on  four  columns 
of  granite.  This  church,  on  Avhich  primitive  times 
have  left  their  mark,  is  but  a  hundred  feet  from  the 
school  where  St.  Augustine  taught  rhetoric,  and  the 
adjoining  street  perpetuates  this  circumstance,  for  it 
is  still  called  the  Via  della  Greca,  though  the  Bishop 
of  Hippo  taught  in  Latin  the  lessons  of  Homer,  whose 
own  tongue  he  had  not  studied.*  In  the  portico  is 
the  splendid  twelfth-century  tomb  of  Cardinal  Al- 
fanus,  and  against  the  wall  the  colossal  mask  in  veined 
marble,  from  four  to  five  feet  in  diameter,  so  well 
known  under  the  name  of  the  Bocca  della  Verita.  It 
is  a  flat  or  slightly  concave  face,  with  a  mouth  open- 
ing in  a  circle  in  the  middle,  as  if  to  serve  for  the  fun- 
nel of  some  pipe.  At  Rome  they  consider  the  Bocca 
della  Verita  to  have  been  used  as  the  mouth  of  a 
drain.  The  children  of  the  neighborhood  amuse  them- 
selves by  clambering  up  to  the  great  lunar  face  and 
burying  their  fists  in  its  round  mouth.  The  grand- 
mothers have  believed  and  repeated  for  centuries  to 
the  youngsters  that  if  they  put  their  hands  into  the 
bocca  after  telling  a  lie,  they  will  never  be  able  to 
draw  them  out  again.  The  little  folk  believe,  and  to 
escape  the  terrible  punishment  make  up  their  minds 
to  honorable  confession. 

Close  by  the  Temple  of  Fortune  stands  the  singu- 

*  Via  della  Greca  is  so-called  from  the    Greek  colony  that 
once  inhabited  this  quarter. 


136  ROME. 

lar  edifice  erected  by  Nicolaus  Crescentius,  usually 
called  the  house  of  Cola  di  Rienzi.  It  is  built  princi- 
pally out  of  fragments  of  ancient  sculptures  and  build- 
ings in  order,  as  an  inscription  states,  to  preserve 
them  for  the  admiration  of  posterity. 

Before  establishing  himself  at  the  Capitol  and  tak- 
ing shelter  in  the  Castle  of  St.  Angelo,  could  the 
friend  of  Petrarch,  Cola  di  Rienzi,  when  he  was 
notary  apostolic,  have  lived  in  this  house  ?  The 
thing  does  not  seem  improbable.  Towards  the  year 
1347  Rienzi,  his  imagination  inflamed  by  the  tradi- 
tions of  ancient  Rome,  and  by  the  orators  of  the 
queen  of  the  universe,  whose  equal  he  claimed  to  be, 
striving  hard  to  restore  republican  manners  with  a 
view  to  arousing  public  spirit  and  suppressing  feudal 
brigandage,  Cola  di  Rienzi,  Avho  in  preaching  his 
crusade  recalled  to  mind  the  Gracchi,  the  Fabricii, 
the  Brutuses,  the  Scipios, — this  Roman  of  old  time  who 
appealed  on  behalf  of  freedom  to  inscriptions,  monu- 
ments, and  ruins,  may  well  have  made  his  home  in 
this  house,  built  out  of  fragments  of  Roman  grandeur, 
at  the  bottom  of  the  Velabrum,  in  front  of  the  camp 
of  Porsenna,  close  to  the  Fabrician  bridge,  not  far 
from  the  Tarpeian  rock,  facing  the  rotunda  of  the 
Sun,  and  at  the  side  of  the  Republican  temple  of  For- 
tuna  Virilis. 


Piazza  Bocca  Delia  Verita 


^  . 


.'•'I.  J 


THE  POKTA  PIA.  137 


CHAPTER    VII. 

Rebuilt  in  16-42  by  Borromini  and  Rainaldi,  the 
church  of  S.  Agnese  confronts  you  as  you  enter  the 
Circo  Agonale  (Piazza  Navona)  from  the  east.  It 
stands  upon  the  spot  where  the  Virgin  Martyr  was 
publicly  exposed  after  the  flames  had  failed  to  con- 
sume her;  two  subterranean  chapels  with  vaulted, 
roofs  being  said  to  be  a  part  of  the  original  Circus  of 
Domitian  where  the  persecution  took  place.  S. 
Agnese  Avas  iinaUy  killed  by  being  stabbed  in  the 
throat ;  and  her  parents  interred  her  in  the  catacombs 
situated  on  the  Via  Nomentana. 

To  follow  her  to  her  tomb,  it  will  be  necessary  for 
us  to  ascend  the  Quii'inal  and  leave  Rome. 

You  will  never  forget  the  day  on  which  for  the 
first  time  you  tread  the  Roman  campagna,  especially 
if,  directing  your  steps  towards  the  Mons  Sacer,  you 
have  gone  out  by  the  Porta  Pia  which  replaces  the 
old  Nomentane  gate  through  which  the  Emperor 
Nero,  in  full  flight  from  his  soldiers  who  had  at  last 
revolted,  made  his  escape  from  Rome  followed  by  a 
slave.  A  military  camp  still  occupies  the  spot  where 
the  praetorian  camp  then  stood,  under  whose  walls 
the  fugitive  Csesar  was  obliged  to  pass  so  close  that 


138  KOME. 

he  could  hear  the  soldiers  shouting  "  Long  life  to 
Galba."  It  was  there  that  in  later  times  these  same 
troops  sold  the  empire  by  auction  :  and  it  was  there, 
in  the  midst  of  this  same  praetorian  camp,  that  Cara- 
calla  slew  his  brother  Geta  in  the  arms  of  their 
mother,  JuHa,  who  was  covered  with  blood  and 
wounded  in  the  hand  in  attempting  to  defend  one  son 
from  the  other,* 

To  penetrate  into  the  uncultivated  regions  of  this 
great  historic  and  pastoral  desert,  you  had  not  for- 
merly to  traverse  that  suburb  of  small  houses  and 
taverns  which  ends  in  the  absurdities  of  the  Villa 
Torlonia,  whose  owner  has  constructed  imitation  ruins. 
To  set  up  a  counterfeit  in  the  midst  of  the  richest 
necropolis  of  antiquity — what  clumsy  competition ! 
On  the  summit  of  a  slight  eminence  about  a  mile  from 
the  gate  stands  the  church  of  S.  Agnese  fuori  le  Mura, 
adjoining  the  church  of  S.  Costanza  and  the  ruins  of 
an  early  Christian  cemetery. 

Constantine,  at  the  request  of  his  sister  Constantia, 
erected  this  basilica  over  the  tomb  of  the  saint.  It 
was  rebuilt  by  Honorius  in  the  seventh  century  and 
altered  by  Innocent  VIII.  in  the  fifteenth.  In  order 
to   reach  it  we  descend  a  flight  of  marble   steps   be- 

*  Pius  IV.  closed  the  Porta  Nomentana  and  built  tlie  Porta 
Pia,  the  designs  being  made  by  Michael  Angelo.  It  in  turn  was 
rebuilt  after  the  capture  of  Rome  by  the  troops  under  Victor 
Emanuel,  who  entered  the  city  through  a  breach  in  the  walls 
close  by,  on  September  20,  1870. 


S.  AGNESE.  139 

tween  walls  covered  with  ancient  inscriptions.  The 
basilica  has  side  aisles  separated  from  the  nave  by 
two  tiers  of  ancient  columns  of  portasanta  and  sevia- 
mzza  breccia.  The  seventh  century  mosaics  repre- 
sent Popes  Honorius  and  Symmachus  on  either  side 
of  S.  Agnese,  crowned  and  wearing  a  gold,  bejewelled 
laticlave  with  white  borders,  and  a  violet  tunic ;  the 
subdued  light,  the  poetic  associations,  and  the  ancient 
character  of  this  venerable  edifice  all  contribute  to 
make  a  deep  religious  impression  upon  the  beholder. 
It  wovdd  be  deeper  still  if  Pius  IX.  had  not  had  the 
decorations  of  the  interior  restored. 

It  is  to  S.  Agnese  that  on  the  21st  of  January  the 
abbot  of  the  regular  chapter  of  St.  Saviour  comes 
after  mass  to  bless  two  lambs  placed  on  the  altar ; 
after  which  ceremony  they  are  restored  to  a  dignitary 
of  St.  John  Lateran,  who  in  turn  sees  that  they  get 
the  papal  benediction,  and  are  then  placed  in  some 
convent  of  nuns  appointed  by  the  holy  father,  to  be 
taken  care  of.  At  Easter  one  of  these  lambs  is  served 
on  the  pontifical  table,  and  from  their  wool  are  Avoven 
the  pallia.  The  pallimn  was  before  the  fourth  cen- 
tury an  exclusive  privilege  of  the  popes ;  it  recalls 
the  obligation  of  bearing  on  the  neck  like  the  Good 
Shepherd  the  sick  and  strayed  sheep.  As  this  mis- 
sion proceeds  from  the  apostle  Peter,  it  is  from  his 
tomb,  where  they  have  been  placed  on  the  eve  of  the 
festival,  that  the  pope  takes  the  pallia  for  the  purpose 
of  distributing  them. 


140  ROME. 

Hard  by  S.  Agnese  (and  adjoining  the  ruins  of 
what  was  probably  the  first  Christian  cemetery)  is  a 
building  of  the  same  date,  but  whose  original  appear- 
ance has  been  much  better  preserved.  It  was  as  a 
tomb  for  his  daughter  and  his  sister  that  the  son  of 
St.  Helen  erected  this  building,  as  Ammianus  Mar- 
cellinus  attests.  Though  it  is  sometimes  thought  to 
have  been  originally  intended  for  a  baptistery.  The 
great  porphyry  sarcophagus  of  St.  Constantia  was  re- 
moved and  placed  in  the  Vatican  by  order  of  Pius 
VI.  When,  in  1256,  he  converted  the  tomb  into  a 
church,  Alexander  IV.  deposited  under  the  altar  in 
the  middle,  the  body  of  St.  Constantia,  where  it  still 
remains. 

Among  all  the  edifices  of  the  Roman  decline  we 
find  here  the  most  ancient  examples  of  coupled  col- 
umns. They  are  of  antique  origin,  and  reach  the 
number  of  four-and-twenty  5  their  granite  shafts  sup- 
port over  varied  capitals  very  curious  protuberant 
friezes,  above  which  rises  a  cupola.  The  vaults  of 
the  Arabulatorium  are  decorated  with  mosaics  on  a 
white  ground,  belonging  to  the  fourth  century — speci- 
mens that  would  be  unique  if  those  of  St.  Pudentiana 
had  not  been  preserved  as  well,  for  the  frieze  of  Santa 
Maria  Maggiore  can  only  belong  to  the  end  of  the 
same  century.*  These  precious  mosaics  have  for 
their  subjects  flowing  designs  formed  by  vine-shoots 

*  Kugler  attributes  the  Santa  Maria  Maggiore  mosaics  to  the 
first  half  of  the  fifth  century.     See  Hand-hook  of  Painting,  p.  27. 


S.  COSTANZA.  141 

turned  in  various  directions  and  laden  with  bunches 
of  ripe  grapes.  Pagan  genii  gather  the  fruit  from 
branch  to  branch  ;  occasionally  the  interspaces  are 
furnished  with  grotesque  heads ;  some  coffer-work 
frames  rosettes  connected  by  interlacings  which  form 
crosses.  Nothing  could  be  more  interesting  than  this 
specimen  of  the  decorative  art  of  antiquity  before  its 
final  decline.  As  the  work  was  executed  by  an  artist 
who  lacked  the  too  recent  inspiration  of  Christian 
feeling,  these  charming  mosaics  are  only  connected 
by  their  intention  with  the  new  faith,  and  accordingly 
the  tomb  of  St.  Constantia  long  passed  for  a  temple 
of  Bacchus.  Such  mistakes  are  no  longer  permissible, 
since  so  many  sarcophagi  of  the  first  centuries  have 
shown  us  this  subject  of  the  vintage,  the  mystic  sense 
of  which  is  clearly  set  forth  by  the  Fathers,  as  well 
as  by  the  following  passage  from  the  Acts  of  St. 
Eugenia  :  "  Now  is  the  time  of  the  vintage,  when  the 
rich  grapes  shall  be  severed  to  be  pressed,  after  their 
separation  from  the  slender  vine-branches,  into  the 
heavenly  cups."  The  form,  style,  and  delicate  de- 
sign of  these  compositions  have  for  set-off  some  rude 
mosaics  of  a  very  much  later  period,  representing 
Christ  and  two  apostles,  and  Christ  seated  on  a  globe. 
They  are  much  too  late,  and  yet  too  early. 

These  two  or  three  acres  of  ground  along  a  country 
road-side  contain  evidences  of  a  complete  history  of 
the  heroic  ages  of  religion.  Martyrs,  places  of  sub- 
terranean worship,  two  stories  of  catacombs,  symboli- 


142  ROME. 

cal  inscriptions,  sacred  paintings  of  the  earliest  cen- 
turies, all  await  you  in  the  depths  of  the  earth. 

Outside  ancient  Rome,  along  the  fifteen  Consular 
roads  which  radiated  from  the  Capitol  as  a  centre, 
there  existed  in  the  third  century,  besides  a  score  of 
underground  cemeteries  consecrated  to  families, 
twenty-six  great  catacombs,  which  answered  to  the 
number  of  the  parishes  of  that  time.  It  has  been 
calculated  that  these  labyrinths  must  measure  three 
hundred  and  fifty  miles  of  gallery,  and  must  contain 
six  millions  of  dead.  The  average  width  of  the  cor- 
ridors is  about  thirty  inches  ;  placed  one  over  another, 
so  as  sometimes  to  form  five  stories,  they  are  never 
dug  more  than  about  seventy  feet  deep,  a  depth  at 
which  the  volcanic  crust  ends  to  make  way  for  humid 
clays.  Nothing  can  be  more  interesting  than  these 
cradles  of  religion,  these  asylums  of  the  martyrs  of 
imperial  tyranny,  ancestors  whom  all  Christian  com- 
munions venerate.  As  one  cannot  visit  many  cata- 
combs, people  are  often  content  with  taking  a  few 
steps  in  the  public  ones  of  St.  Sebastian  which  are 
entirely  broken  down,  and  then  return  fully  persuaded 
that  all  the  others  are  the  same  ;  hence  perhaps  the 
idea  that  all  these  cemeteries  were  estabhshed  in  old 
sand-quarries — arenaria.  At  St.  Agnes  these  travel- 
lers would  find, — but  above  crypts, — genuine  arenaria 
with  more  spacious  vaults  and  wide  passages  practi- 
cable for  carriages.  In  these  quarries  are  sometimes 
cut  narrow  stairs  or  traps  by  which  to  descend  mys- 


THE  CATACOMBS  OF  S.  AGNESE.  143 

teriously  into  real  catacombs,  the  early  Christians 
having  as  a  matter  of  fact  utilized  a  number  of 
abandoned  sand-quarries  in  this  manner. 

The  cemetery  where  St.  Agnes  had  her  tomb, 
which  now  serves  as  the  altar  of  the  church  built 
above  it,  this  dormitory,  for  such  is  the  literal  and 
spiritualistic  meaning  of  the  word,  is  situated  about 
two  miles  from  Rome  ;  you  enter  it  from  the  midst 
of  a  wild  garden  by  a  flight  of  some  thirty  steps.  At 
the  bottom  you  penetrate  a  series  of  narrow  corridors 
following  one  another,  cut  at  right  angles,  intricate 
like  a  network  of  lanes,  and  Avhose  complexities  could 
certainly  never  have  permitted  any  kind  of  working. 
What  could  they  have  extracted  from  these  under- 
ground caverns!  Their  divisions  are  not  made 
either  of  stone  suitable  for  building  nor  of  pozzalana 
for  the  preparation  of  cement  ]  on  the  other  hand, 
for  hollowing  out  places  of  sepulture  the  sand  of  the 
arenaria  would  have  offered  too  little  resistance,  while 
the  rock  of  the  quarries  woidd  have  been  too  hard  to 
cut.  The  Christians  must  then  have  chosen  in  the 
intermediate  section  of  the  volcanic  stratum  that 
porous  marl  which  was  of  a  sufficiently  hard  consist- 
ency, while  it  was  tolerably  easy  to  chip  away  ;  a 
hght  substance  readily  worked,  which  does  not  spHt, 
and  which  would  not  block  up  the  passages  with 
bulky,  heavy  pieces  difficult  to  remove. 

Such  is  the  geological  constitution  of  the  catacombs. 
The  debris  from  the  newly-formed  galleries  was  usu- 


144  ROME. 

ally  dumped  in  the  old  galleries,  which  had  become 
full,  or  else  raised  by  means  of  ropes  and  baskets, 
and  mixed  either  with  the  sand  of  the  quarries  of  the 
upper  range  or  with  the  uncultivated  ground  of  the 
surface.  At  any  rate,  it  is  certain  that  the  catacombs 
could  only  have  been  intended  to  serve  as  cemeteries, 
and  were  expressly  set  apart  for  that  purpose.  Their 
use,  for  that  matter,  long  preceded  the  Christian  era; 
Pliny  informs  us  that  the  practice  of  incineration  was 
not  very  ancient,  and  that  many  great  families  had 
preserved  the  custom  of  burying  their  dead.  Sallust 
had  under  his  garden  catacombs  provided  with  loculi; 
while  the  dictator  Sulla  was  the  first  of  the  Cornelian 
family  whose  body  was  burned. 

The  walls  of  these  sepulchral  galleries  were  con- 
verted into  a  sort  of  chests,  where  they  ranged  the 
dead  in  superimposed  rows  hollowed  in  the  tufa  close 
to  one  another,  so  that  you  seem  to  walk  between 
rows  of  cupboards  from  Avhich  the  drawers  have  been 
taken.  The  cavity  dug  out  to  receive  the  corpse 
was  closed,  either  with  large  bricks  or  with  thin 
pieces  of  marble.  As  we  observe  how  they  econo- 
mized space,  leaving  no  more  than  the  necessary 
room  between  the  compartments,  and  taking  advan- 
tage of  the  very  smallest  nooks  for  the  burial-places 
of  children — of  which  the  number  is  prodigious — 
we  learn  more  than  any  books  could  teach  us  of  the 
rapid  propagation  of  the  faith  during  the  first  cen- 
turies.    The  complexity  of  the  place  explains  how^ 


THE  CATACOMBS.  145 

without  going  beyond  the  third  milestone  they  could 
have  made  three  hundred  and  fifty  miles  of  winding- 
ways.  The  country  around  pagan  Rome  was  simply 
undermined  by  the  catacombs. 

If  I  add  that  before  the  year  316  these  cities  of 
the  departed,  where  the  holy  mysteries  were  cele- 
brated, and  where  catechumens  were  instructed,  some- 
times hid  as  many  of  the  living  as  they  contained  of 
the  dead,  we  can  understand  how  at  the  moment  when 
Christianity  was  officially  proclaimed,  it  had  already 
rallied  all  the  lower  and  middle  classes  under  its  ban- 
ner, only  leaving  to  pagan  worship  the  support  of  the 
old  Roman  aristocracy,  the  natural  enemies  of  a  dogma 
which,  by  proclaiming  equality  and  the  fraternal  pos- 
session of  earthly  goods,  annihilated  at  a  blow  both 
large  properties  and  the  institution  of  slavery,  the 
sole  means  of  keeping  up  such  extensive  appanages. 
Thus  Tacitus,  as  the  mouthpiece  of  the  most  oppres- 
sive tyranny  that  ever  existed,  describes  the  Chris- 
tians as  ^'  infamous  and  pestilent  men,  execrated  for 
their  crimes."  Constantino  yielded  to  necessity  when 
he  gained  the  support  of  the  Nazarenes  and  placed 
the  cross  upon  his  standard  :  in  hoc  signo  vinces.  The 
safety  of  the  empire  Avas  at  stake.  We  may  readily 
imagine  how  imperious  this  necessity  must  have  been, 
when  we  recall  that  more  than  a  century  before, 
under  Septimius  Severus,  Tertullian  affirmed  that  if 
the  Christians  were  forced  to  emigrate,  the  Roman 
empire  would  become  a  desert. 

10 


146  ROME. 

Some  visitors  are  so  painfully  impressed  by  the 
aspect  of  the  catacombs,  and  so  suffocated  by  the 
atmosphere  of  their  narrow,  low,  and  interminable 
passages,  where  the  air  is  made  still  heavier  by  the 
smoke  of  the  torches,  that  they  beg  to  be  allowed  to 
make  their  way  back.  In  truth,  it  seems  likely 
enough  that  had  the  torches  gone  out  or  the  old  and 
bowed  guide,  who  preceded  us,  been  struck  by  apo- 
plexy, we  would  have  been  condemned  to  await  death 
in  this  tomb  of  some  millions  of  souls,  since  the  S. 
Agnese  catacombs  were  not  then  open  to  the  general 
public,  and  we  had  come  alone  by  appointment ;  and 
even  supposing  that  a  week  after  another  guide  should 
have  brought  another  party,  they  would  most  likely 
have  directed  their  steps  towards  a  different  quarter. 
These  are  reflections,  however,  to  which  people  do 
not  stoop  until  after  an  event.  The  tombs  of  mar- 
tyrs and  heroes,  often  nameless,  attract  one's  atten- 
tion especially  ;  they  are  easy  to  distinguish,  for 
when  the  gravemakers  closed  them,  they  fastened  in 
the  cement  by  the  side  of  the  head  an  ampulla  of 
glass  in  which  the  blood  of  the  confessor  had  been 
collected.  You  still  see  on  all  hands  the  marks  and 
often  the  fragments  of  these  vessels.  When  the 
martyrs  had  been  drowned,  burned,  or  put  to  death 
without  spilling  of  blood,  then  in  sealing  up  the  burial- 
place  the  workman  with  the  point  of  his  trowel  drew 
in  the  fresh  mortar  rude  sketches  of  palm-trees, 
numbers  of  which  are  to  be  seen.     Occasionally  we 


CATACOMBS  OF  S.  AGNESE.  147 

recognize  the  calcined  bones  of  a  martyr  burnt  alive, 
and  it  sometimes  happens  that  the  bones  are  crystal- 
Uzed  to  such  a  degree  as  to  shine.  Inscriptions  give 
the  names  of  the  dead  ;  those  in  Greek  are  usually 
the  oldest,  Greek  having  been  the  official  tongue  of 
the  primitive  Church.  Many  of  the  tombs  are  still 
closed  fast  and  untouched. 

During  the  persecutions,  the  rigor  of  which  was 
not  unbroken,  the  mysteries  of  worship  took  place  in 
narrow  oratories  still  existing  in  their  entirety,  as 
well  as  in  baptisteries  of  which  the  underground 
springs  are  still  flowing.  The  sacred  celebration 
took  place  on  the  tomb  of  some  illustrious  martyr ; 
hence  the  origin,  the  form,  and  even  the  name  of  our 
altars,  which  we  still  consecrate  by  the  introduction 
of  relics.  You  find  also  the  seat  {cathedra)  of  the 
bishops  cut  in  the  tufa  with  tiers  of  benches  around 
it ;  there  sat  several  successors  of  St.  Peter  in  the 
first  three  centuries.  In  certain  chapels  two  chairs, 
placed  as  far  as  possible  apart  from  one  another  and 
placed  diagonally,  represent  confessionals.  Ordi- 
narily these  churches  are  divided  into  two  parts,  one 
for  men  and  the  other  for  women,  the  latter  recog- 
nizable by  the  seats  on  either  side  of  the  door ;  dur- 
ing the  giving  of  instruction  to  female  catechumens, 
a  second  assistant  deacon  was  appointed  to  supervise. 
In  the  tympana  of  the  vault  of  a  tomb-altar  there  are 
visible,  not  sculptures,  for  the  substance  did  not  lend 
itself  to  thenij  and  they  would  have  been  poorly  ap- 


148  KOME. 

preciated  by  lamplight,  but  paintings,  the  first  that 
Christianity  produced — curious  documents  of  the 
primitive  religion.  Sometimes  in  walking  along  this 
sub-Roman  world,  so  complete  and  so  popidous,  we 
see  a  patch  of  blue  above  the  russet  walls,  one  of 
those  openings  hidden  among  the  brushwood  above, 
which  served  to  bring  a  little  air  into  these  unknown 
caves  and  so  permit  the  Christian  world  to  breathe. 

If  you  wish  to  penetrate  further  into  the  study  of 
the  catacombs  and  their  symbols,  we  must  return  to 
Rome,  cross  the  whole  of  the  city,  and  pass  out  the 
gate  of  St.  Sebastian. 

Forgotten  for  hundreds  of  years,  confounded  even 
as  late  as  the  middle  of  the  present  century  with  the 
cemetery  of  St.  Sebastian  or  Avith  that  of  Pretextatus, 
the  catacombs  of  Calixtus  were  definitely  discovered 
in  1852,  by  the  most  eminent  of  Roman  archaeologists, 
Signer  De  Rossi.  St.  Calixtus  is  one  of  the  ceme- 
teries which  help  us  best  to  understand  what,  after 
the  reign  of  Constantino,  was  the  fate  of  the  cata- 
combs. Pope  Damasus  and  his  successors  decorate 
and  embellish  them;  light-holes  {Incernaria)  are  made 
above  the  tombs  of  the  more  illustrious  saints ;  they 
wall  up  corridors  that  had  no  interest,  and  which  only 
added  to  the  complications  of  the  labyrinth;  and  they 
allow  new  locidi  to  be  hollowed  out  for  the  burial  of 
pious  families  under  the  protection  of  the  blessed 
patrons  of  the  ages  of  trial.  It  was  then  that  the 
faithful  of  the  fourth  century  described  this  place  as 


Porta  S.   Sebastian© 


CATACOMBS  OF  ST.  CALIXTUS.  149 

the  Jerusalem  of  the  martyrs  of  the  Lord.  Believers 
came  thither  from  all  the  extremities  of  the  world. 

This  catacomb  was  constructed  long  before  the 
epoch  at  which  Pope  Calixtus  I.— sprung,  they  say, 
from  the  Domitian  family,  but  who  had  directed  a 
bank  in  the  Forum — bequeathed  his  name  to  the 
cemetery  on  the  Appian  Way  ;  some  IochU  are  closed 
with  bricks,  the  stamping  on  which  dates  from  Mar- 
cus Aurelius ;  and  everything  shows  that  this  ceme- 
tery of  pagan  origin  was  created  by  the  Cfecilii  on 
their  vast  territories,  and  afterwards  ceded  by  them 
to  the  Christians.* 

As  at  S.  Agnese,  it  is  from  the  midst  of  an  uncul- 
tivated garden  that  you  descend  into  that  historic 
spot  where  the  most  modern  additions  date  from  the 
ninth  century.  Half-way  down  the  stair,  whose  walls 
are  lined  with  vegetation,  as  soon  as  you  have  lost 
sight  of  the  city  and  its  hiUs,  the  lights  are  kindled 
and  each  visitor,  taper  in  hand,  penetrates  into  this 
labyrinth  of  sanctuaries  very  much  as  the  subter- 
ranean processions  used  to  go.  Armed  with  torches, 
the  guides  who  precede  you  plunge  deeper  and  deeper 
into  the  sombre  corridors,  where  the  black  smoke  of 
the  resin  seems  to  throw  them  into  strange  and  fune- 

*  It  is  the  opinion  of  Signor  De  Rossi  that  Calixtus  was  orig- 
inally a  slave,  and  that  his  predecessor  in  the  Papal  See — St. 
Zephyrinus — placed  him  in  charge  of  the  cemetery  on  the  Ap- 
pian Way,  from  which  circumstance  it  came  to  be  called  by  his 
name. 


150  ROME. 

real  perspective.  For  very  nervous  persons  the  sen- 
sation of  fright  is  not  less  overpowering  here  than  it 
is  at  S.  Agnese,  and  we  frequently  see  women  and 
old  men  so  overcome  that  they  stop  and  pray  to  be 
taken  back  to  the  light  of  the  sun.  You  are  among 
not  less  than  three  rows  of  sepulchres  one  above  the 
other :  skeletons  are  under  your  feet  as  over  your 
head  ;  they  elbow  you  right  and  left.  Men  by  hun- 
dreds of  thousands  have  prayed  and  sung  in  these 
galleries,  and  now  they  sleep  in  them  the  sleep  of 
death. 

The  tombs  of  Anterus  and  Fabian,  and  of  Euty- 
chianus,  have  been  found,  as  well  as  inscriptions  show- 
ing that  that  of  Sixtus  II.  was  close  by  ;  and  from 
ancient  authorities  we  know  that  many  others  of  the 
Popes  of  the  third  century  were  buried  here  as  well. 

During  the  second  and  third  centuries  this  under- 
ground cliapel  of  the  Popes  was  used  as  a  place  of 
worship,  and  more  than  one  of  the  spiritual  masters 
of  the  Christian  world  suffered  martyrdom  in  the 
adjoining  galleries.  They  had  as  guardians,  as  sol- 
diers, and  as  legates,  mendicants  posted  from  place 
to  place  who  kept  watch  along  the  Appian  Way. 
When  St.  Csecilia  wanted  to  send  her  husband  Vale- 
rianus  to  be  baptized,  to  Pope  St.  Urban,  who  was 
concealed  in  the  cemetery  of  S.  Pretextatus,  "  Go," 
she  said,  "  as  far  as  the  third  mile  on  the  Appian 
Way  ;  there  you  Avill  find  some  poor  people  who  beg 
alms  of  the  passers-by.     I  have  always  helped  them, 


CATACOMBS  OF  ST.  CALIXTUS.       151 

and  they  possess  the  secret ;  you  will  salute  them, 
saying  to  them,  ^  Ca?cilia  has  sent  me  to  you  that  you 
may  lead  me  to  the  holy  old  man,  Urban,  because  she 
has  charged  me  with  a  secret  mission  for  him.'  " 

The  site  of  the  tomb  of  St.  Csecilia  is  still  marked 
at  St.  Cahxtus.  As  we  approach  her  cnhicnlum, 
tombs,  and  a  midtitude  of  inscriptions  placed  on  the 
walls  by  enthusiastic  pilgrims,  announce  the  vicinity 
of  that  famous  personage,  before,  in  a  crypt  adjoin- 
ing the  papal  room,  we  have  recognized  the  likeness 
of  the  saint  and  that  of  Urban  who  buried  her.  In  a 
recess  I  observed  a  Christian  sarcophagus,  made  in 
imitation  of  a  pagan  urn,  and  of  very  rude  art ;  it  is 
only  of  the  fourth  century,  and  Christianity  had  not 
then  produced  sculptors.  In  two  other  sarcophagi  we 
saw  bodies  whole,  and  preserved  under  glass,  one  still 
being  dressed  in  its  shroud.  Further  off  under  a 
common  inscription  are  united  with  two  other  con- 
fessors St.  Dionysius  and  St.  Zoe,  St.  Heliodora  and 
St.  Procopius.  Birds  and  flowers,  as  well  as  the 
peacock,  emblems  of  the  joys  of  paradise  and  immor- 
tal life,  are  painted  in  the  Arcosolium  above  one  of 
the  tombs.  As  at  S.  Agnese,  it  sometimes  happens 
that  a  lucernaria  piercing  from  story  to  story  allows 
us  to  discern  from  the  very  deepest  crypt,  as  if  one 
were  at  the  bottom  of  a  well,  a  circle  of  blue  sky 
framed  in  transparent  foliage  with  the  stars  shining 
in  it  and  forming  in  the  darkness  an  illusive  appear- 
ance  of  night.     Sometimes,   too,  a  circumstance  of 


152  ROME. 

which  certain  critics  have  made  use,  you  stumble 
against  the  remains  of  pagan  sculpture  and  inscrip- 
tions, but  always  near  these  lucernaria  through  which 
such  fragments  rolled  with  masses  of  sand  and  ruin. 
At  what  epoch  did  they  cease  to  frequent,  and  at  last 
even  to  know  the  situation  of,  these  underground 
abodes  ?  I  am  scarcely  less  ignorant  than  the  authors 
by  whom  I  might  have  allowed  myself  to  be  edified 
on  this  point.  Indications  that  pilgrimages  continued 
to  be  made  to  them  after  the  ninth  century  are  clear 
to  me  from  the  examination  of  a  little  Byzantine 
Madonna  that  I  saw  above  a  tomb.  It  is  known  that 
in  the  twelfth  century  the  pilgrims  of  Einsiedeln 
visited  them,  and  I  lately  acquired  proof  of  this  when 
I  went  to  establish,  in  the  celebrated  convent  of  the 
canton  of  Schweitz,  the  real  age  of  the  Regionarium ; 
but  what  is  more  surprising  is,  that  in  the  fifteenth 
century  an  archbishop  of  Bourges  placed  in  the  ceme- 
tery of  St.  Calixtus  two  inscriptions,  which  I  recog- 
nized. This  subterranean  Vatican  of  the  primitive 
church  abounds  in  interesting  epitaphs  ;  I  contented 
myself  with  translating  the  following  as  we  passed 
hastily  along  by  the  flickering  light  of  the  torches, 
for  you  must  keep  close  to  the  guide  who  holds  the 
thread  of  your  days  : 

THE  FIFTH  OF  THE  KALENDS  OF  NOVEMBER. 

HERE  WAS  LAID  TO  SLEEP 

GORGONIUS,  WHOM  ALL  LOVED  AND  WHO  HATED 

NONE. 


INSCKIPTIONS  IN  THE  CATACOMBS.  153 

This  inscription,  like  many  others,  is  in  Greek  ;  the 
following  is  in  Latin,  but  without  any  date,  which  is 
a  sign  of  great  antiquity  : 

TOO  SOON  HAST  THOU  FALLEN 

CONSTANTIA  !    ADMIRABLE  FOR  BEAUTY 

AND  FOR  HER  CHARMS,  SHE  LIVED 

XVIII  YEARS,  VI  MONTHS,  XVI  DAYS. 

CONSTANTIA,  IN  PEACE. 

There  are  some  which  recall  memories  of  the  per- 
secutions ;  such  is  that  of  one  Marius,  a  young  officer 
under  Hadrian,  "  tt'/w  lived  long  enough,  for  he  spent 
his  life  and  his  hloodfor  Christ ^  His  friends  laid 
him  there  with  much  wailing  and  many  fears.  This 
one,  which  comes  from  S.  Agnese,  and  is  composed 
in  Latin  with  Greek  letters,  is  very  significant: 

HERE  GORDIANUS 

MESSENGER  FROM  GAUL,  SLAIN  FOR  THE  FAITH, 

WITH  ALL  HIS  FAMILY. 

THEY  REST  IN  PEACE. 

THEOPHILA,  THEIR  SERVANT,  HAD  THIS  DONE. 

The  poor  envoy  from  Gaul,  put  to  death  on  foreign 
soil  with  all  his  family  ;  the  servant,  left  alone  and 
far  from  her  land,  raising  a  monument  to  her  master 
and  adorning  it  with  a  palm — here  is  a  touching  epi- 
sode in  the  inner  life  of  our  forefathers.     The  work- 


154  KOME. 

men  of  the  catacombs,  or  grave-makers,  formed  not  a 
corporation  but  a  minor  order  of  the  clergy.  An 
inscription  has  been  found  at  St.  Calixtus  with  these 
words : 

DIOGENES  THE  GKAVEDIGGER,  IN  PEACE, 

LAID  HERE 

THE  EIGHTH  BEFORE  THE  KAL.  OF  OCTOBER. 

This  is  placed  above  the  deHneation  of  the  de- 
ceased. His  tunic  comes  down  to  his  knees,  and  he 
is  shod  Avith  sandals.  On  his  left  shoulder  is  a  piece 
of  fur  or  stuff;  on  his  right  shoulder  as  well  as  above 
the  knees  are  traced  small  crosses  5  in  one  hand  he 
holds  a  mattock,  and  in  the  other  a  lamp  hung  by  a 
small  chain ;  around  him  are  the  tools  of  his  business. 
The  characteristic  of  most  of  the  inscriptions  is  ten- 
der and  consolatory  thought ;  affection  sighs  its  re- 
grets, and  faith  breathes  in  hope.  There  is  nothing 
pompous,  nothing  to  recall  the  dignities  of  this  world; 
much  cheerfidness,  much  simplicity,  much  sweetness. 

TO  ADEODATA,  MERITORIOUS  VIRGIN, 

WHO  RESTS  HERE  IN  PEACE,  HER  CHRIST  HAVING 

WILLED  IT  SO. 

The  virtues  praised  among  the  deceased^re  always 
amiable  virtues  ;  friend  of  the  poor,  f older  mid  blame- 
less soul,  lamb  of  the  Lord.     A  widower  recalls  hfteen 


INSCRIPTIONS  IN  THE  CATACOMBS.  155 

years  of  union  sine  lesione  animi;  he  was  father  of 
seven  children,  but  his  ivife  has  four  of  them  with  lier 
with  the  Lord. 

MAY  THY  SOUL  BE  REFRESHED 

IN  SUPREME  BLISS, 

O  KALEMIRA ! 

Certain  names  show  how  recent  the  conversions 
were.  Two  sons  address  this  prayer  over  the  tomb 
of  their  mother : 

LORD,  MAY  THE  SOUL  OF  OUR  MOTHER,  VENUS, 
NOT  BE  LEFT  IN  DARKNESS. 

People  frequently  commend  themselves  to  the 
prayers  of  the  dead,  and  place  their  dear  ones  de- 
parted under  the  protection  of  some  saint  who  hap- 
pens to  be  their  neighbor  : 

LADY  BASILIA, 
I  COMMEND  TO  THEE  THE  INNOCENCE  OF  MY  VERY 
DEAR  SON  GEMELLUS. 
FAREWELL,  SWEETEST  CHILD  ; 
WHEN  THOU  SHALT  IN  BLISS  ENTER  THE  KING- 
DOM OF  CHRIST, 
FORGET  NOT  THY  MOTHER,  AND  FROM  SON 
BECOME  GUARDIAN. 

A  husband  has  added  Avith  his  hand  to  the  inscrip- 


156  KOME. 

tion  of  his  wife :  Pray  for  thy  husband,  Celsianus. 
Some  widows  are  described  as  viduce  Dei,  matrons 
who  had  consecrated  their  widowhood  to  the  Lord. 
On  the  pavement  of  one  of  the  chapels  we  read  the 
words : 

PAULUS  EXORCISTA   DEPOSITUS  MAKTYKIES. 

It  seemed  to  me  that  at  St.  CaHxtus  the  paintings 
were  more  numerous  as  well  as  more  important  than 
at  S.  Agnese.  You  come  upon  the  Anchor,  which 
symbolizes  hope ;  the  Dove  flying  away  with  the 
olive-branch  in  his  mouth,  emblem  of  the  Christian 
soul  that  quits  this  world  in  peace ;  the  Ship  at  the 
foot  of  a  beacon ;  the  Fish,  f.WTI,  whose  Greek 
name  recalls  that  of  Christ  and  furnishes  the  initials 
of  the  formula,  /lyo-oDc  Xptard^  dtnu  Ylb-.  lojTTjp ;  Bread, 
symbol  of  the  Eucharist ;  the  Rabbit  gnawing,  sym- 
bol of  the  destruction  of  the  body.  The  Tortoise 
and  the  Dormouse  signify  that  the  sleep  of  Death 
will  be  followed  by  an  awakening  ;  the  Children  in 
the  Furnace  remind  the  confessor  that  he  must  brave 
torment ;  Daniel  given  to  the  Lions  is  the  patron  of 
martyrs ;  Jonas  is  the  emblem  of  regeneration  by 
faith.  In  a  group  these  signs  become  the  elements 
of  a  hieroglyphic  tongue,  of  which  only  the  initiated 
can  penetrate  the  meaning.  Thus  the  Anchor  and 
Fish,  hope  in  Christ ;  a  Fish  carrying  Bread  is  Jesus 
giving  himself  in  the  Eucharist ;  a  Tree  covered  with 
Birds  pecking  its  fruit,  is  the  phalanx  of  the  chosen 


CHEISTIAN  ART  IN  THE  CATACOMBS.         157 

on  the  tree  of  life  in  the  lieavenly  garden.  The 
parables  and  the  Bible  supply  a  number  of  trans- 
parent allegories,  such  as  the  Sower,  the  Fisherman 
making  a  draught  of  Souls,  the  Good  Shepherd  bring- 
ing back  the  lost  sheep,  the  Reaper,  the  Yine-dresser, 
the  Raising  of  Lazarus,  and  so  forth.  Noah  in  the 
Ark  meant  the  Christian  saved  and  received  into 
alliance  ;  Moses  striking  the  Rock  symbolizes  bap- 
tism, as  well  the  doctrine  which  Christ  has  made  to 
flow  out  into  the  world,  to  bring  back  life  to  it. 
Above  Moses  we  sometimes  read  the  name  of  St. 
Peter,  the  Moses  of  the  new  law.  On  a  ceiling 
divided  into  compartments,  a  number  of  these  subjects 
make  a  frame  to  Orpheus,  who  draws  a  crowd  of  ani- 
mals and  even  turtles  to  himself.  This  curious  roof, 
which  Bosio  first  sketched,  dates  back,  according  to 
D'Agincourt,  to  the  end  of  the  first  century. 

In  another  painting,  Jesus  dispatches  his  disciples 
to  preach  to  the  nations,  who  are  represented  by 
sheep.  Observe  how  they  receive  the  divine  word. 
One  of  them  feels  itself  drawn  towards  the  apostle ; 
another  moves  away  ;  this  listens  attentively,  but 
with  misgivings ;  the  last,  who  would  fain  conciliate 
both  God  and  the  world,  lowers  its  head  while  listen- 
ing to  browse  at  the  same  time.  In  the  first  cen- 
turies we  see  Christ  under  the  form  of  the  Good 
Shepherd  and  sometimes  seated  in  the  midst  of  the 
Twelve  ;  but  this  face,  so  yomig,  Apollo-like,  beard- 
less,   and    smiling,   is    destitute   of  all    iconographic 


158  EOME. 

character,  while  Peter  and  Paul  belong  to  a  confirmed 
type  and  spring  from  a  traditional  portrait.  The 
representation  of  the  Virgin  Avith  her  Son  is  frequent.* 
The  Christ  is  sometimes  symboUzed  in  Orpheus. 
Still,  if  we  except  Psyche  (the  soul  elevated  to  mys- 
tic love),  the  images  drawn  from  paganism  are  rare. 
Besides  the  ever-green  ivy  which  accompanies  many 
epitaphs,  we  notice  tlie  pineapple,  which,  a  tradition 
that  comes  down  from  the  ages  of  paganism,  makes 
incorruptible. 

The  cemetery  of  Calixtus  reveals  to  us  the  works 
of  embellishment  executed  in  the  catacombs,  from  the 
time  of  St.  Damasus,  described  as  the  Virgin  Doctor 
of  the  virgin  church  by  St.  Jerome,  who  was  his  sec- 
retary, and  who  remembered  Avandering  in  the  cata- 
combs in  his  childhood,  down  to  Pascal.  It  was 
Damasus  who  prevented  the  raising  in  the  senate  of 
a  pagan  altar  to  Victory,  and  who  obtained  from 
Valentinian  in  370  a  decree  forbidding  members  of 
the  clergy  from  receiving  donations  or  testamentary 
bequests.  He  regretted  the  purity  of  the  old  days 
of  persecution,  and  wished  to  be  buried,  not  in  the 
cemetery  of  Csecilia  and  of  Calixtus,  for  which  his 
humility  disinclined  him,  but  in  a  small  outside  chapel 
near  by.  Some  of  the  walls  of  this  chapel  are  still 
standing. 

*  An  orante  or  female  figure  praying  in  allusion  to  the  church 
is  sometimes  pointed  out  as  the  Virgin,  but  there  is  no  represen- 
tation of  the  Virgin  ivith  her  Son. 


THE  CCELIAN.  159 


CHAPTER    VIII. 

The  Cselian  being-  a  melancholy  spot,  it  is  best  to 
go  there  alone,  so  as  to  gain  an  impression  in  har- 
mony with  the  look  of  the  place.  To  ascend  this 
slope,  you  leave  on  the  right  a  monastery  of  rich  and 
substantial  aspect  close  by  the  site  of  the  house  of  the 
Anician  family,  where  Gregory  the  Great  was  born. 
The  street,  which  is  shaded  by  trees,  is  commanded 
on  the  left  by  the  lofty  apse  of  the  conventual  church 
of  St.  John  and  St.  Paul,  which  has  belonged  ever 
since  Clement  XIV.  to  the  Passionist  fathers.  The 
tower-shaped  chevet  is  crowned  with  a  rounded  dia- 
dem of  arches  cut  in  festoons  and  supported  on  little 
columns.  Sometimes  along  the  line  of  this  road  por- 
tions of  the  ancient  pavement  vary  the.  chessboard 
pattern  of  the  modern  ;  the  Avail  on  the  right,  which 
separates  various  gardens  from  the  street,  is  contem- 
porary with  Nero.  This  Avail,  mixed  with  opiis  re- 
ticularimn  of  brick  and  peperino,  shoAvs  against  its 
massive  sides  the  traces  of  a  roAv  of  small  habitations. 
To  uphold  the  embankment  and  support  the  Re- 
demptorist  convent,  Avhich  is  on  the  edge  of  the  street, 
they  luiA'e  throAvn  from  one  side  to  the  other  a  series 
of  flying  arches  Avhich  form  a  perspective  at  the  back 


160  ROME. 

of  which,  set  fast  among  the  buildings  and  in  ruins, 
rises  the  arch  of  Dolabella. 

A  Httle  further  on  you  reach  the  piazza  where  Leo 
X.  placed  a  small  marble  boat,  which  has  given  its 
surname  to  the  church,  kSta.  Maria  della  Navicella, 
more  commonly  described  as  in  Donieiiica,  and  which 
replaced  the  house  of  a  noble  lady,  St.  Cyriaca. 
This  temple,  supported  on  ancient  columns  of  granite 
and  porphyry,  was  restored  by  Leo  X.  from  plans 
made  by  Raphael.  The  frieze  above  the  architraves 
of  the  nave,  although  it  is  to  be  attributed  to  P.  della 
Vaga  and  Giulio  Romano,  might  well  have  been  de- 
signed and  even  partially  executed  by  Giovanni 
d'Udine.  The  mosaics  of  the  clioir,  dating  from  the 
year  817  to  824,  are  all  the  more  interesting,  from 
the  fact  that  paintings  of  the  ninth  century  are  not 
very  common  in  Rome. 

It  was  the  feast  of  St.  Stephen,  and  to  find  his 
church  I  had  only  to  follow  the  crowd  along  a  battered 
street  which  many  feet  had  already  made  slippery ;  a 
veritable  mountain  pilgrimage  intra  muros.  As  this 
strange  temple  is  not  often  opened  except  on  the  day 
o^  the  fun 2 ion c,  taverns  and  stalls  for  the  sale  of  small 
tapers  are  improvised  along  the  approaches  to  the 
building.  Holiday-makers  of  the  Rione  Toscano, 
coachmen,  pilgrims  from  the  country,  all  stop  to 
watch  the  stream  of  people  returning,  and  to  gather 
a  few  baiocchi  from  them  upon  occasion.  You  would 
sometimes  imagine  that  these  good  folk  were  quar- 


SAN  STEFANO  ROTONDO.         161 

relling,  and  about  to  cut  one  another's  throats ;  hut 
they  are  only  playing  at  mora,  a  word  which,  while 
expressing  the  idea  of  delay  or  check,  is  the  name 
of  a  game  that  keeps  the  adversaries  constantly  on 
the  alert  and  excites  them  to  excess.  It  consists  in 
presenting  very  suddenly  to  your  partner  your  right 
hand,  keeping  one  or  two  fingers  shut,  and  crying 
out  at  the  same  moment  the  number  of  fingers  ex- 
tended. Your  adversary  is  obliged  to  seize  your  idea 
with  magical  rapidity,  and  to  pronounce  the  same 
number  as  rapidly  as  you.  The  left  hand  serves  to 
mark  the  points  gained.  The  tensity  of  mind  re- 
quired, and  the  rapidity  of  the  turns,  make  both 
players  cry  out  the  numbers  in  jerks  ;  their  faces  at 
the  same  time  become  glowing  and  contracted,  while 
their  voices,  breathless  and  hoarse,  accent  with  a  gut- 
tural dryness  the  words  uttered  monosyllabically — 
Bn'  !—Qnattr'  !—  Un'  !—Tre'  l—Cinq'  !  Animated 
by  this  trifling,  which  not  seldom  degenerates  into  a 
downright  quarrel,  so  easy  and  so  doubtful  is  a  mis- 
take, the  Romans  unconsciously  assume  postures  and 
expressions  of  ferocious  beauty.  At  the  street  cor- 
ners I  was  never  weary  of  Avatching  them.  It  is  said 
that  their  ancestors  played  at  mora  while  besieging 
Syracuse,  and  they  even  talk  of  a  Greek  bas-relief 
where  the  petulant  Ajax  is  beaten  at  it  by  the  sage 
Ulysses  in  presence  of  the  aged  Nestor. 

The  church  of  San  Stefano  Rotondo  is  extremely 
spaciousj  its  conical  roof  sloping  on  to  an  architrave 

11 


162  EOME. 

covers  fifty-six  marble  and  granite  columns,  with 
Ionic  and  Corinthian  capitals.  The  unequal  dimen- 
sions of  the  shafts,  certain  disproportions  between 
their  diameters  and  those  of  the  capitals,  the  rude 
design  of  some  of  the  ornaments,  a  number  of  in- 
cised crosses  in  the  heart  of  the  acanthuses — all  de- 
note a  Christian  temple  constructed  of  odds  and  ends 
on  a  circular  ground-plan  at  the  end  of  the  fifth  cen- 
tury. It  is  said,  in  fact,  that  it  was  founded  towards 
465  by  Pope  Simplicius,  who  as  a  native  of  Tivoli, 
might,  from  the  Sibylline  temple,  have  acquired  a 
fancy  for  monuments  of  a  round  form.  This  is  sur- 
rounded by  a  perfect  necklace  of  altars  ;  over  one  of 
them  is  preserved  a  mosaic  of  the  seventh  century. 
Let  us  also  not  forget  to  mention  a  very  fine  statue 
of  a  Bishop  lying  on  a  sarcophagus  by  Lorenzetto, 
the  tomb  of  Bernardino  Capella,  who  died  in  the  first 
half  of  the  sixteenth  century.  But  these  are  not  the 
principal  curiosities  of  San  Stefano  Rotondo,  nor  what 
make  it  so  popular.  In  old  times,  when  spectacular 
representations  were  rare,  the  spiritual  and  temporal 
pastors  of  a  people  that  Avas  degenerate  in  its  passion 
for  theatres,  in  order  to  attract  the  populace,  whose 
mind  it  was  necessary  to  stir,  had  invested  most  of 
the  churches  with  ceremonies  and  displays  of  a  pecu- 
liar character.  At  St.  Peter's,  the  regal  pomps  of  the 
sovereign  church  ;  at  the  Ara  Coeli,  the  pastoral  of 
the  Nativity  ;  at  St.  Stephen  the  Round,  they  repre- 
sented with  all  its  terrors  the  melodrama  of  martyr- 


ACADEMY  OF  ST.  LUKE.  163 

doni,  and  tliis  is  quite  naturally  the  spectacle  which 
the  populace  prefer. 

Let  us  come  to  the  objects  of  this  keen  curiosity. 
In  1452  Nicholas  V.  filled  in  the  spaces  between 
the  outer  circuit  of  columns  surrounding-  this  build- 
ing, so  as  to  form  the  present  wall.  In  the  compart- 
ments thus  made  Pomerancio  and  Tempesta,  in  the 
second  half  of  the  sixteenth  century,  painted  frescoes 
of  the  Tortures  of  the  Martyrs  under  the  Jews,  under 
the  emperors,  and  under  the  Vandal  kings.  The 
horrors  of  the  charnel-house  or  the  amphitheatre,  the 
most  hideous  inventions  of  cannibalism,  the  ferocities 
of  human  butchery  interpreted  in  a  nightmare — that 
is  what  the  good  people  come  here  to  see,  and  that  is 
what  is  depicted  with  all  that  imagination  can  do  to 
add  to  the  horrors  of  reality. 

To  enter  the  gallery  of  St.  Luke,  you  have  to  ring 
at  a  modest  door  on  the  left  of  the  Via  Bonella ;  once 
entered  you  find  yourself  facing  some  cows  that  Ber- 
ghem  has  brought  to  graze  among  the  ruins.  A  fine 
shipwreck  by  Tempesta,  a  landscape  by  Salvator 
Rosa,  a  few  pastorals  of  Blomen,  instantly  give  you 
the  keynote  of  the  modern  and  natural  school. 

I  wish  to  give  a  sketch  of  this  museum,  of  the  im- 
pression it  makes,  of  the  entertainment  or  benefit  that 
one  may  derive  from  it,  without  feeling  myself 
obliged  to  mention  this  or  that,  under  penalty  of  ap- 
pearing incomplete.  As  for  the  details,  there  is  the 
catalogue.      The  principal  attraction  of  the  collection 


164  EOME. 

comes  from  its  diversity;  it  possesses  something  of 
every  school,  and  the  most  complete,  rather  than  the 
largest,  examples  of  each  school — a  rare  circmnstance 
in  a  gallery  created  with  a  view  to  teaching. 

The  sanctuary  of  the  place  is  dedicated  to  Raphael 
on  account  of  two  important  paintings  ;  one  which 
represents  a  robust  and  beautifid  child,  naked,  in  the 
style  of  the  Farnesini,  is  a  piece  of  fresco  detached 
from  one  of  the  rooms  of  the  Vatican,  and  which  once 
belonged  to  Wicar,  the  benefactor  of  the  museum  at 
Lille ;  the  other  has  been  made  common  by  engrav- 
ings, and  the  painters  have  placed  a  copy  of  it  in 
their  church.  It  is  the  St.  Luke  painting  the  Madonna, 
who  descends  from  heaven  to  pose  for  him ;  behind 
the  evangelist  a  pupil,  probably  Raphael,  watches  and 
draws  in  inspiration  ;  a  charming  head,  painted  with 
much  suppleness.* 

One  of  the  gems  of  the  Gallery  is  the  portrait  of 
the  handsome  Madame  Vigee-Lebrun,  whom  I  knew 
when  she  was  nearly  a  hundred  years  old,  at  Louve- 
ciennes,  where  she  died.  A  grey  dress,  and  a  cloud 
of  white  muslin,  serving  at  once  for  kerchief  round  the 
neck  and  coiffure  for  the  head,  constitute  her  neglige. 
This  celebrated  artist,  who  exhausted  all  the  triumphs 
that  fame  and  beauty  can  confer,  had  cut  on  her 
gravestone  the  simple  words,  "  At  last  I  rest." 

In   short,  you  may   amuse   yourself  by   lounging 

*  This  picture  is  not  thought  to  be  the  work  of  Kaphael. 


Portrait  of  Mme.  Le  Brun,  by  herself 


THE  MAMERTINE  PRISONS.  165 

among  the  cosmopolites  of  the  galleries  of  St.  Luke, 
as  one  does  in  the  cabinet  of  a  capricious  amateur. 
It  is  a  good  refuge  when  some  sudden  shower  drives 
you  from  the  Coliseum,  the  Palatine,  or  the  Forum. 

Turning  west  to  begin  the  ascent  of  the  Capitol, 
at  the  corner  of  the  Via  del  Marforio,  under  the 
small  church  of  San  Giuseppe,  a  monument  of  an 
entirely  diiferent  sort  will  arrest  you  on  the  Avay. 

I  mean  those  two  dungeons,  one  above  the  other, 
whose  names  recall  their  founders,  the  Mamertine 
prison,  in  memory  of  King  Ancus  Martins  (issue  of 
Mars,  whom  the  Oscans  called  Mamercus),  and  the 
TuUian  prison,  because  King  Servius  Tullius,  they 
say,  had  it  dug  out  under  the  first.*  These  dun- 
geons, the  oldest  in  the  world,  are  seen  to-day  in  all 
the  severe  nakedness  of  their  original  construction, 
their  appearance  being  in  perfect  keeping  with  their 
great  antiquity. 

The  Mamertine  prison,  properly  so  called,  into 
which  you  now  descend  from  the  church  of  St. 
Joseph  belonging  to  the  corporation  of  carpenters,  is 
in  the  shape  of  a  trapezium  tAventy  feet  long  by  about 
sixteen  broad ;  the  masonry  consists  of  enormous 
blocks  of  volcanic  stone  or  reddish  peperino,  cubed 
and  arranged  in  the  Etruscan  way ;  the  roof,  which 
is  semi-cylindrical  (though  irregular,  the  sides  of  the 
square  being  unequal),  is  formed  of  immense  blocks 

*  More  probably  from  the  spring  of  water  which  has  existed 
there  from  the  earliest  times — tullius  meaning  a  spring. 


166  KOME. 

of  stone.  In  it  is  a  hole,  formerly  the  only  means 
of  entrance,  through  which  the  prisoners,  tightly 
bound,  were  lowered  by  ropes,  the  lictors  or  execu- 
tioners descending  by  ladders,  either  to  chain  the 
prisoners  to  the  walls  or  to  slay  them  in  the  Tul- 
lianum.  Thus  those  who  were  in  the  upper  prison, 
after  being  for  a  moment  lighted  up  by  the  torches, 
would  hear  cries  from  below,  and  presently  behold 
the  bleeding  and  mutilated  corpses  being  slowly  drawn 
up.  These,  after  dangling  before  their  eyes  for  a 
few  moments,  would  disappear  to  be  thrown  from  the 
top  of  the  stairs  of  the  Gemonite,  whence  they  were 
publicly  dragged  by  hooks  through  the  Forum  Vela- 
brum,  as  far  as  the  Sublician  bridge,  where  the  Tiber 
became  their  grave.  The  lower  prison,  that  cavern 
of  slaughter  which  in  the  time  of  Hannibal  was 
already  eighteen  palms  below  the  level  of  the  Forum 
— the  TuUianum,  is  of  smaller  dimensions  than  the 
Mamertine.  This  cave,  nearly  circular  in  form,  is 
of  volcanic  peperino  and  deeply  smoke-stained ;  the 
layers  of  stone  are  rather  disjointed ;  the  lateral  walls 
are  only  about  five  and  a  half  feet  high,  as  the  vault- 
ing is  extremely  low.  As  in  the  other  chamber,  there 
are  no  traces  of  a  door  to  be  discovered ;  and  one  of 
the  sides  is  formed  of  solid  rock.  At  the  present 
day,  the  TuUianum  contains  for  its  furniture  a  modest 
altar,  the  shaft  of  a  column,  and  a  tin  cup  fastened  by 
a  chain  to  the  side  of  the  fountain,  which  flows  clear 
and  without  reflection  over  the  blackish  earth  where 


THE  MAMERTINE  PRISONS.  167 

there  has  been  much  blood  to  drink.  An  inscription 
traced  upon  the  wall  of  the  Maniertine  prison  informs 
us  that  in  the  year  22  of  our  era  Ruffinus  and  Coc- 
ceius  Nerva,  the  consuls,  made  some  repairs.  This, 
dating  back  nearly  nineteen  hundred  years,  is,  I  be- 
lieve, the  only  modern  restoration  of  the  building. 

The  Lucumos  of  Tarquinige  were  sprung  of  the 
Etruscan  stock  which  permitted  human  sacrifices, 
and  the  crypt  of  the  temple  dedicated  to  their  gods 
must  have  been  a  slaughter-house.  Josephus  demon- 
strates the  duration  of  these  customs.  '^  It  is  a  pious 
usage,"  writes  the  Jewish  historian,  '^  to  put  to  death 
in  the  Mamertine  prisons  the  chiefs  of  the  conquered 
nations,  while  the  triiunphant  conqueror  sacrifices  on 
the  Capitol  to  Jupiter."  Pliny  the  Elder  saAv  buried 
alive  in  the  Forum  Boarium,  with  the  design  of  win- 
ning the  favor  of  the  gods,  a  man  and  a  young  Avoman 
born  in  Gaul,  Avith  which  country  they  were  then  at 
Avar ;  and  this  pious  atrocity  seems  quite  natural  to 
him. 

We  see  this  prison  to-day  just  as  it  appeared  four 
or  five  centuries  before  the  Csesars,  in  the  time  of  the 
Decemvirs,  when  Appius  Claudius  slew  himself  there. 
Who  is  not  reminded  of  the  lot  of  Manlius  Capito- 
linus,  reduced  to  appeal  for  his  defence  against  the 
envious  Camillus,  to  thirty  enemies  slain  Avith  his  OAvn 
hand,  to  his  eight  civic  croAvns,  to  his  thirty-tAvo  mili- 
tary awards,  and  to  the  scars  that  adorned  his  breast? 
But  all  in  vain,  he   is   thrust  into  the   frightful  Tul- 


168  KOME. 

lianum.  Then  arrives  in  this  hostehy  of  slaughter 
Jugurtha,  who  carried  on  for  so  long  a  campaign 
against  the  Romans,  and  whom  Marius  and  Sulla  to- 
gether would  never  have  conquered,  if  the  treason 
of  the  king  of  Mauritania  had  not  delivered  him  into 
the  hands  of  the  latter.  As  he  came  down  from  the 
Capitol,  where  he  had  figured  in  the  triumph  of 
Marius,  Jugurtha,  like  an  actor  whose  part  is  over, 
was  stripped  and  cast  into  the  TuUianum.  "  By  the 
gods  !"  he  exclaimed,  as  they  entered  his  name  on  the 
jailer's  scroll,  "  how  cold  your  Ijatli  is  !"  It  took  six 
days  of  starvation  for  death  to  release  him. 

It  Avas  to  the  Tullianum  that  Cicero  conducted 
Lentulus,  Cethegus,  and  the  other  accomplices  of 
Catiline,  to  their  swift  doom,  little  foreseeing  that  to 
punish  him  for  thinking  that  he  had  thus  saved  his 
country,  a  law  would  be  enacted  confiscating  his 
property  and  driving  him  into  exile.  Aristobulus 
and  Tigranes,  after  the  triumph  of  Pompey,  were 
incarcerated  according  to  custom  in  the  Mamertine 
prisons. 

After  all,  these  Romans  were  a  cruel  people,  and 
their  great  men  had  small  souls.  The  valiant  fair- 
haired  warrior  of  the  Gauls,  Vercingetorix,  who  con- 
fronted Jidius  Caesar  with  an  enemy  worthy  of  him, 
was  transported  to  the  Mamertine  cage  to  await  the 
ceremony  of  the  triumph.  It  was  put  off  for  six 
years ;  Vercingetorix  figured  in  it,  and  then  Csesar 
had  him  slain  in  the  Tullianum.     It  has  devoured 


THE  MAMERTINE  PRISONS.  169 

people  of  every  sort,  this  famous  jail,  from  crowned 
heads  to  common  criminals.  Sejanus  was  put  to 
death  in  it,  as  well  as  his  daughters.  Six  years 
before  the  remnant  of  Israel  had  entered  there, 
another  Simon,  Simon  the  Fisher,  and  Saul  the  con- 
verted philosopher  of  Damascus,  had  borne  into  these 
dungeons  their  last  fetters  ;  the  chapel  of  San  Pietro 
in  Carcere  being  so  called  in  memory  of  this  fact. 
It  is  said  that  St.  Peter  was  bound  to  the  pillar  at  the 
side  of  the  altar.  The  tin  cup  placed  near  the  sub- 
terranean spring  is  for  the  use  of  those  of  the  foith- 
ful  Avho  care  to  drink  water  from  a  source  Avhich 
quenched  the  thirst  of  the  Apostle  and  baptized  his 
jailers.  Processus  and  Martinianus. 

As  you  reflect  that  as  far  back  as  the  dawn  of  the 
Republic  these  prisons  represented  a  still  earlier 
regime,  and  that  for  five-and-twenty  centuries  illus- 
trious victims  have  wept,  raged,  prayed,  groaned  in 
this  cave  with  its  blood-soaked  soil,  you  are  pro- 
foundly moved  by  the  contemplation  of  what  has 
been  looked  upon  by  kings  of  Asia,  by  consuls,  by 
enemies  of  Rome,  by  saints  ;  by  seeing  everything 
exactly  as  these  men  left  it,  by  breathing  in  the  at- 
mosphere in  which  they  lived,  and  by  saying  to  your- 
self as  you  touch  the  Avails,  that  there  perhaps  where 
your  hand  lies,  the  first  of  the  popes  rested  his  head, 
which  had  in  its  turn  been  touched  by  the  hand  of 
Christ. 

On  the  Capitoline  hillj  the  Senatorial  Palace  planted 


170  ROME. 

on  that  ancient  base  the  Tabularium,  fronts  on  the 
Intermontiura.  Shutting  off  the  northwestern  end 
of  the  Forum  on  one  side,  it  skirts  on  the  other  an 
open  space,  the  Piazza  del  Campidoglio.  Standing 
in  the  centre  of  this  you  will  have  on  your  right  the 
Protomotheca,  founded  by  Pius  VII.,  and  the  palace 
of  the  Conservators  or  civil  magistrates ;  and  on  your 
left  the  museum  of  the  Capitol.  A  little  behind  rises 
the  church  of  the  Ara  Coeli,  where  the  Temple  of 
Jupiter  used  to  be,  a  pendant  to  the  Tarpeian  rock, 
which  was  crowned  of  old  by  the  Acropolis.  The 
piazza  is  bounded  by  a  flight  of  stairs  and  balustrades, 
above  which  rise  the  colossal  figures  of  Castor  and 
Pollux,  adjoining  those  celebrated  trophies  which 
have  retained  the  name  of  Marius,  but  Avhich  belong 
to  the  age  of  Trajan. 

Between  the  steps  and  the  principal  palace  rises 
the  single  bronze  equestrian  statue  bequeathed  to  us 
by  Roman  antiquity.  Yet  this  only  owed  its  preserva- 
tion during  the  middle  ages  to  its  being  mistaken  for 
a  statue  of  Constantine.  In  the  fifth  century,  when 
it  was  still  gilded,  Totila  is  said  to  have  carried  it  off, 
and  to  have  been  about  to  put  it  on  shipboard  when 
Belisarius  recovered  it.  In  the  time  of  Sylvester  II. 
the  supposed  Constantme  edified  the  faithful  in  the 
Forum  Boarium  ;  Pope  Scolari  (Clement  III.)  trans- 
ported it  to  the  front  of  the  Lateran  Palace,  the  old 
abode  of  Constantine.  Here  it  remained  mitil  1538, 
when  Paul  III.  directed  Michael  Angelo  to  place  it  in 


STATUE  OF  MAKCUS  AUEELIUS.  171 

its  present  position,  the  very  spot  where  Arnold  of 
Brescia  was  burnt  in  1155;  and  near  the  steps  at 
whose  foot  two  centuries  before,  Rienzi,  flying  from 
the  Capitol,  came  to  his  death  by  the  knife  of  an 
artisan.  When  Andrea  Verocchio,  the  best  gold- 
smith in  Florence,  came  to  Rome,  the  Marcus  Aure- 
lius  made  so  vivid  an  impression  upon  him  that  he 
was  emboldened  by  that  revelation  of  equestrian 
sculpture  to  undertake  the  Bartolommeo  CoUeone  of 
the  Piazetta  Zanipolo  at  Venice,  a  truly  incompar- 
able masterpiece.  The  illustrious  pupil  of  Ghirlan- 
dajo  and  Verocchio,  Leonardo  da  Vinci,  had  likewise 
drawn  his  inspiration  from  the  Marcus  Aurelius,  as 
well  as — according  to  Paolo  Jove — from  the  horses 
of  the  Dioscuri,  when  he  offered  for  the  admiration 
of  the  people  of  Milan  his  model  of  the  equestrian 
figure  of  Francis  Sforza,  which,  Avhen  exposed  to 
view  in  1493,  seemed  superior  to  the  Donatello  of 
Padua  {GatiameJata)  and  even  to  the  Verocchio  of 
Venice.  The  revolution  of  1499  hindered  the  exe- 
cution of  this  masterpiece  :  nothing  is  left  of  the 
sculptures  of  the  great  Leonardo,  and  it  is  only 
from  the  testimony  of  Ludovico  Dolce  that  we  knoAv 
to  what  a  point  this  artist,  the  only  one  of  the  three 
greatest  contemporary  painters  whose  school  was 
maintained  without  growing  degenerate,  was  ^'' stii- 
pendissimo  in  far  cavalUy 

The  buildings  on  the  Capitoline  hill  belong  to  an 
epoch  of  complete  decadence,  though  they  have  been 


172  KOME. 

much  praised  because  they  were  believed  to  be  the 
work  of  Michael  Angelo.  They  were  really  only 
erected  under  Innocent  X.  and  Alexander  VII.,  by 
an  architect  who  made  his  patrons  believe  that  he 
was  executing  the  designs  of  the  late  master.  Thus, 
without  feeling  the  slightest  obligation  to  halt  before  all 
these  pilasters,  we  Avill  at  once  enter  the  Museo  Capito- 
lino,  and  make  our  bow  to  IMarforio,  the  colossal  statue 
of  a  river  god,  found  at  the  end  of  the  Via  di  IMar- 
forio, which,  according  to  some,  gets  its  name  from 
the  Forum  Martis,  an  etymology,  however,  which  is 
hardly  satisfactory.  This  court  is  filled  Avith  inscrip- 
tions, sarcophagi,  and  ancient  statues.  No  amateur 
will  fail  to  look  with  interest  at  the  fine  sarcophagus, 
in  an  adjoining  room,  from  which  the  Portland  vase 
M^as  taken.  In  the  court  I  also  noticed  some  carved 
fragments  from  the  Temple  of  Concord,  of  exquisite 
Avorkmanship.  The  staircase  is  lined  with  marble 
slabs  found  beneath  the  Temple  of  Romidus,  on 
which  are  engraved  the  ground-plans  of  Rome  as 
it  was  in  the  days  of  Septimus  Severus.  A  mistake 
has  given  its  name  to  the  hall  of  the  Dying  Gladiator. 
The  warrior  mortally  wounded,  that  for  so  many  years 
has  been  admired  in  the  Capitol  under  that  designa- 
tion, does  not  in  truth  represent  a  gladiator  at  all,  but 
a  Gaulish  chieftain.  The  collar  or  torque  leaves  no 
doubt  on  this  subject,  as  may  be  proved  by  compar- 
ing this  type  with  the  bas-reliefs  on  the  sarcophagus 
preserved  in  Room  V.   on  the  ground  floor,  Avhich 


CAPITOLENE  MUSEUM.  173 

represent  a  combat  between  Romans  and  Gauls  355 
years  before  our  era,  in  the  time  of  the  Consul 
Atilius  Regulus,  the  figures  of  this  curious  sarcoph- 
agus recalling,  Avith  their  curling  hair  and  torques, 
this  dying  warrior,  in  whom  we  see  one  of  the  ancient 
heroes  of  the  French  race.  In  the  gallery  is  an  old 
reproduction  of  the  Faun  of  Praxiteles ;  while  some 
Etruscan  fragments,  and  a  quantity  of  works  from 
Greece,  including  even  archaic  pasticci,  afford  an  op- 
portunity for  stiidying  a  variety  of  schools  and  meth- 
ods. It  is  in  a  chamber  of  this  museum  that  the 
Antinoiis  is  to  be  found,  that  ideal  of  sensual  beauty ; 
and  the  bust  of  the  murderer  of  Caesar,  Marcus  Bru- 
tus, a  fine,  intelligent,  marked,  and  sombre  head, 
strangely  recalling  the  features  of  Armand  Carrel ; 
also  that  statue  of  a  Roman  lady,  so  naturally  posed 
and  so  well  draped,  in  which  without  valid  reason 
some  people  have  pretended  to  recognize  Agrippina, 
others  Domitia.  We  will  only  cite,  in  addition,  the 
figures  of  Flora,  the  Amazon,  the  infant  Hercules, 
the  boy  holding  a  comic  mask,  which  gave  Raphael 
his  inspiration  on  more  than  one  occasion,  and  the 
bust  of  Ariadne,  a  dream  of  fascinating  beauty. 

The  inhabitants  of  Olympus  are  merely  the  lares 
of  this  palace ;  as  fast  as  the  great  personages  of  an- 
tiquity are  resuscitated  by  the  excavations  they  are 
sent  to  recruit  the  lofty  society  of  the  Capitol.  How, 
in  the  midst  of  so  noble  a  population,  can  we  help 
believing  with  the  contemporaries  of  Apuleius,  nay 


1 74  ROME. 

with  St.  Augustin  himself,  that  the  spectres  of  mar- 
ble are  tenanted  by  souls  ?  Etiquette  has  formed 
two  distinct  salons  :  in  one  of  them  the  writers  and 
philosophers  of  Rome  offer  hospitality  to  those  of 
Greece ;  and  in  this  areopagus  more  than  eighty 
celebrities  shine.  There  you  visit  Socrates,  Seneca, 
Agrippa,  Diogenes,  Theophrastus,  Apuleius,  the  ar- 
chitect Posidonius,  Demosthenes,  Sophocles,  Cato, 
Thucydides,  Antisthenes,  Terence,  Apollonius  of 
Tyana,  Aspasia  and  Pericles,  Archytas,  Sappho, 
Periander  ....  we  cannot  cite  all  of  them.  In 
the  middle  sits  Marcellus,  the  victor  of  Syracuse ; 
while  on  the  walls  are  bas-reliefs :  among  them  a 
Sacrifice  to  Hygeia,  signed  by  Callimachus. 

The  other  salon  is  occupied  by  royalty.  In  this 
chamber  the  various  imperial  families  are  gathered 
together,  from  Marius  to  Decentius  Magnus.  Marius 
is  the  mortal  to  whom  flattery  has  decreed  most 
statues ;  the  sediles  set  up  one  of  him  in  each  street 
of  the  city,  and  his  ugliness  apparently  disarmed 
envy.  For  all  that,  Sulla  threw  them  down.  Nero's 
eyes  are  treated  in  a  way  that  enables  us  to  under- 
stand that  blinking  described  by  Pliny  ;  his  visual 
organ  was  in  fact  so  excessively  weak  that  he  con- 
ceived the  idea  of  having  a  flat  emerald  cut  and 
polished,  through  which  during  the  games  of  the 
circus  he  used  to  watch  the  contests  of  the  gladiators. 

There  are  in  this  hall  some  unique  portraits; 
women,   girls,   brothers   of  emperors,   that  are  only 


PALACE  OF  THE  CONSERVATORS.      175 

found  here.  It  is  a  collection  of  inestimable  value, 
which,  by  familiarizing  us  with  these  faces,  brings 
antiquity  as  close  to  us  as  the  era  of  the  House  of 
Valois.  Yet  by  the  side  of  authentic  portraits,  such 
as  those  of  the  first  Csesars,  and  of  princesses  like 
Messalina — who  belies  by  the  beauty  of  her  physiog- 
nomy the  ugliness  of  her  reputation — or  the  first 
Agrippina,  widow  of  Germanicus,  with  her  hair  so 
strangely  dressed,  there  has  slipped  into  this  chosen 
assembly,  by  virtue  of  a  hypothetical  name,  more 
than  one  unknown. 

Crossing  the  Piazza  we  enter  on  the  Avest  side  the 
Palace  of  the  Conservators,  Avhere  I  was  struck  by 
the  spirited  modelling  of  a  lion  devouring  a  horse. 
The  group  has  been  much  injured  by  damp,  and  Avas 
restored,  it  is  said,  by  Michael  Angelo,  a  bust  of 
whom  attracted  my  attention,  by  the  way,  on  the 
upper  floor ;  it  was  made  from  one  in  marble  taken 
from  life  by  one  of  his  pupils  ;  surely  the  most  ex- 
traordinarily shaped  head,  the  most  gnarled  and 
rugged  features  that  were  ever  seen.  Nor  can  I 
pass  over  in  silence  the  effigy  of  a  personage  whose 
exterior  is  hardly  in  keeping  with  the  ideas  of  renas- 
cent beauty  and  artistic  elegance  that  his  name  stands 
for.  The  colossal  seated  statue  of  Leo  X.,  executed 
in  his  own  time  and  from  life,  we  cannot  doubt,  would 
be  regarded  in  our  time  as  the  work  of  an  intrepid 
realist ;  the  expression,  the  attitude,  the  puffy  obesity 
of  the   pontiff  give  him  the   look  of  a  great  infant, 


176  HOME. 

sixty  years  of  age,  who  lias  not  yet  been  weaned. 
Looking  at  the  profile  of  this  singular  head,  the  nose, 
the  projecting  lower  lip,  and  the  four-fold  chin  look 
like  the  mouldings  of  a  frame  encircling  a  moon ;  the 
eyes  stare  out  of  their  orbits  like  those  of  batrachians  ; 
the  thick  lips  make  us  divine  a  thick  tongue  ;  it  seems 
as  though  the  blood  could  not  possibly  circulate  in 
such  a  mountain  of  flesh — that  such  a  mass  covild 
have  neither  thought  nor  acted.* 

A  staircase  on  the  right  of  the  corridor  leads  to  the 
Gallery  of  Pictures  5  a  very  mediocre  collection  of 
paintings.  The  guide-book  catalogues  are  filled  Avith 
high-sounding  names,  but  Avhen  you  come  face  to  face 
with  the  originals  you  find  numberless  errors.  It  is 
as  though  you  had  gotten  into  a  gathering  of  valets 
of  great  houses,  who  were  lavishing  their  master's 
titles  upon  one  another.  In  the  Camera  dei  Bronzi 
is  the  famous  she-wolf  of  the  Capitol,  with  the  modern 
figures  of  Romulus  and  Remus  ;  and  the  noble  bronze 
vase  with  its  Greek  inscription,  that  Mithridates  gave 
to  the  gymnasium  of  the  Eupatorists.  Close  by  we 
see,  near  the  charming  group  of  Diana  Triformis,  an 
ancient  tripod,  a  bronze  candelabrum  from  the  im- 
perial palace,  adorned  with  portraits  of  the  family  of 
Septimius,  and  some  weights  and  measures  of  ancient 
Rome.  I  must  also  mention  the  remarkable  bust  of 
Junius  Brutus,  founder  of  the  Republic.     The  short, 

*  Removed  to  the  church  of  the  Ara  Coeli  in  1876. 


HOSPITAL  OF  LA  CONSOLAZIONE.  177 

close  hair,  the  square  brow,  the  frowning  eyebrows, 
from  under  Avhich  there  shines  the  tawny  glow  of 
bronze  eyeballs  set  in  an  enamelled  crystal ;  the 
straight,  aquiline  nose,  the  "broad  chin,  the  iron  lips,  the 
iirm,  set  lines  of  the  jaw,  seen  through  a  short,  bristling- 
beard — all  impress  upon  this  physiognomy,  which  has 
a  stern  beauty  of  its  own,  a  really  terrible  character. 
It  does  not  take  very  long  to  descend  from  a  moun- 
tain whose  summit  is  not  much  more  than  a  hundred 
and  sixty  feet  above  the  level  of  the  sea.  Near  the 
foot  of  the  Capitol  is  the  hospital  of  La  Consolazione, 
where  a  dormitory  opening  on  to  a  piazza  is  a  direct 
continuation  of  a  long  street ;  the  doors  are  as  wide 
as  those  of  a  church.  It  was  fine  weather,  and  they 
had  thrown  them  entirely  open,  so  that  from  their 
beds  the  patients  seemed  to  be  taking  part  in  what 
was  going  on  outside.  Thus  the  sick  continue  their 
out-of-door  life  with  the  advantage  of  having  a  roof 
over  their  heads — a  very  happily  devised  arrange- 
ment for  driving  nostalgia  away  from  gossips  accus- 
tomed from  age  to  age  to  live  on  the  public  highway. 
It  is  to  the  duration  of  these  habits  that  we  must  at- 
tribute the  miserable,  unfurnished,  squalid  look,  and 
the  more  than  neglected  housekeeping,  in  the  homes 
of  the  common  people ;  they  are  mere  niches  to  sleep 
in,  where  nobody  is  ever  received,  and  where  they 
never  settle  down,  all  the  relations  of  life  being  car- 
ried on  outside,  as  in  the  old  days  they  used  to  be 
carried  on  in  the  Forum.     For  a  foreigner  coming 

12 


178  EOME. 

from  the  cloistered  regions  of  the  North,  nothing  is 
more  curious  than  thus  to  brush  in  the  street  against 
the  inmates  of  a  hospital ;  and  to  see  the  line  of  the 
houses  continued  right  and  left  by  a  perspective  of 
truckle-beds ;  nurses  and  dying  attending  to  their 
business  without  a  thought  of  the  passer-by.  A 
horse  and  cart  left  to  themselves  by  an  absent  driver 
could  have  wandered  into  this  dormitory  without  let 
or  hindrance.- 

Rome  was  the  first  to  organize  and  develop  special 
hospitals  for  different  diseases. 

As  you  enter  the  city  by  the  Porta  Portese,  situ- 
ated at  the  southern  extremity  of  the  Janiculum,  you 
have  on  your  right  the  Tiber  and  the  vast  hospital  of 
St.  Michael,  situated  on  the  Ripa  Grande,  a  port  con- 
structed by  Innocent  XII.,  on  a  part  of  the  site  of  the 
Prata  Mutia.  It  is  here  that  legend  places  the  camp 
of  Porsenna  and  the  royal  tent  where  Mutius  Scsevola 
thrust  his  hand  into  the  flames.  Besides  being  a  hos- 
pital St.  Michael's  is  a  school  of  industrial  art  for  poor 
children,  and  an  asylum  for  the  aged  and  infirm  of 
both  sexes.  Four  hundred  indigent  children  are  re- 
ceived there,  educated  by  the  most  skilful  masters, 
and  kept  until  the  age  of  twenty-one,  when  the  lads, 
provided  with  positions,  go  away  with  full  purses,  and 
the  girls  receive  a  dower  of  three  hundred  francs. 

The  largest  hospital  in  Rome  is  that  of  Santo 
Spirito,  which  also  includes  a  refuge  for  foundlings. 

It  was  in    1198   that,  as   he   was   walking  on  the 


HOSPITAL  OF  SANTO  SPIRITO.  179 

banks  of  tlie  Tiber,  Innocent  III.  came  npon  a  fish- 
erman who  had  just  brought  up  in  his  net  three  dead 
infants.  Deeply  moved,  the  Holy  Father  imrae^ 
diately  caused  a  barge  to  be  fitted  out  contiguous  to 
the  hospital  of  Santo  Spirito,  which  he  had  just  insti- 
tuted, provided  with  a  movable  turning  box  lined  with 
a  mattress,  in  which  at  any  hour  abandoned  children 
might  be  deposited,  at  the  same  time  forbidding,  under 
severe  penalties,  all  inquiry  as  to  who  placed  them 
there.  The  children  are  kept  at  Santo  Spirito  till 
they  are  old  enough  to  be  sent  to  the  asylum  at 
Viterbo,  where  they  are  taught  a  trade.  At  seven- 
teen the  boys  receive  enough  to  live  upon  for  a  year, 
while  the  girls  are  the  object  of  a  still  more  paternal 
solicitude.  We  cannot  too  warmly  express  our  praise 
and  admiration  at  the  manner  in  which  Rome  has 
constantly  led  the  Christian  Avorld  in  the  path  of 
charity. 

Santo  Spirito  is  situated  on  the  banks  of  the  Tiber 
not  far  from  the  Vatican,  on  the  spot  where  the  Gauls 
and  Germans  who  were  brought  to  Rome  by  Vitel- 
lius  perished  of  fever,  having  sought  according  to 
Tacitus  in  the  waters  of  the  stream  a  disastrous  re- 
lief from  the  summer  heats.  The  vast  establishment 
occupies  that  triangular  space  as  large  as  a  small 
town  just  where  the  Vatican  hill  joins  the  northern 
extremity  of  the  Janiculum.  Marchione  of  Arezzo, 
Baccio  Pintelli,  San  Gallo,  perhaps  even  Palladio, 
worked   successively   on   this    charitable   institution. 


180  ROME. 

When  he  established  it,  Innocent  III.  chose  a  site 
already  consecrated  by  a  Saxon  king,  who  in  717  set 
lip  there  a  hospitiiira  for  his  countrymen,  and  hence 
the  name  of  Santo  Spirito  in  Sassia,  Avhich  the  house 
still  bears.     The  bull  of  foundation  is  dated  1198. 


THE  TAEPEIAN  EOCK.  181 


CHAPTER    IX. 

Although  the  Capitoline  promontory,  overlooking 
the  Forum  and  the  Palatine,  is  scaled  nearly  to  its 
top  by  houses  of  tolerable  height,  the  Tarpeian  rock 
has  not  disappeared ;  to  see  it  quite  close  you  have 
to  pass  down  the  street  of  Torre  de'  Specchi,  in  front 
of  a  religious  house,  founded  by  S.  Francesca  Romana. 
There,  beneath  the  escarped  terraces  of  the  hill,  is  an 
irregular  court,  encumbered  with  old  buildings,  sheds, 
and  pent-houses,  which  seem  to  bear  on  their  roofs 
the  little  gardens  covering  this  spot  of  lugubrious 
memory.  The  rock,  of  which  the  citadel  followed 
the  outlines,  is  of  dark,  porous  tufa  like  the  Tul- 
lianum.  It  forms  an  abrupt  termination  to  the  court- 
yard of  the  old  Caffarelli  Palace,  whence  the  eye  can 
measure,  above  plenty  of  other  ruins,  the  remains  of 
the  precipice  still  so  deep  that  by  jumping  down  one 
would  be  perfectly  sure  to  break  one's  bones.  It  was 
there  that  in  old  times  ingratitude  and  envy  used  to 
launch  into  eternity  the  great  men  who  had  done  too 
much  for  their  country,  and  genius  that  was  too  em- 
barrassing for  the  ruling  mediocrity.  The  heights  of 
this  aerial  cemetery  of  glory  are  scented  with  yellow 
violets  and  rose-colored  gillyflowers. 


182  ROME. 

Seen  from  a  slight  distance  the  rock  is  too  encum- 
bered by  the  surrounding  buildings  to  show  its  real 
size,  but  by  passing  behind  the  Hospital  della  Con- 
solazione,  down  a  lane  which  comes  out  upon  the  Via 
Bocca  della  Verita,  you  measure  better  its  real  height. 
One  of  the  houses  perched  upon  the  summit  was  in- 
habited at  one  time  by  the  lamented  Ampere,  whence 
he  used  to  contemplate  the  historic  horizons  of  ancient 
Rome.  Although  the  level  of  the  Velabrum  and  sur- 
rounding neighborhood  has  since  the  time  of  Sulla 
been  raised  forty-two  feet,  the  Tarpeian  rock  is  less 
changed  in  appearance  than  might  be  supposed.  In 
his  description  of  the  siege  of  the  citadel  by  the  par- 
tisans of  Vitellius,  Avho  were  trying  to  recover  it  from 
the  soldiers  of  Sabinus,  and  Avho  set  it  on  fire,  Tacitus 
represents  the  besiegers  as  climbing  "  the  hundred 
steps  which  separate  the  sacred  wood  of  refuge  from 
the  Tarpeian  rock,"  and  adds  that  the  soldiers  mounted 
to  the  fortress  ^'  by  the  roofs  of  houses,  which,  owing 
to  a  long  peace,  had  been  built  close  to  the  walls,  so 
high  that  they  reached  the  level  of  the  Capitol."  If 
this  description  dated  from  yesterday  we  should  think 
it  exaggerated. 

The  other  summit  of  the  Capitol  is  loftier — in 
glory — than  the  Himalaya.  The  kings  of  gods  and 
men  have  occupied  it  one  after  another,  ever  since 
the  days  of  the  mythical  Saturn,  Avho  dwelt  on  it  and 
planted  a  colony  there.  It  Avas  there  that  Romulus 
established  a  refuge  for  fugitive  slaves ;   while  Tar- 


The   Tarpeian   Rock 


THE  BAMBINO.  183 

peia,  the  daughter  of  his  lieutenant,  gave  her  name 
to  the  rock.  Under  the  Tarquins  the  head  was  dug 
up  that  gave  its  name  to  the  Capitoline  Hill,  and  the 
superb  temple  was  erected  dedicated  to  Jupiter. 
Camillus,  after  the  retreat  of  the  Gauls,  restored  the 
citadel,  and  surrounded  it  with  walls  flanked  by  square 
dungeons ;  Sulla  rebuilt  in  Parian  marble  the  temple 
of  the  sacred  hill ;  Vespasian  did  over  again  on  a 
larger  scale  the  Avork  of  Sulla ;  Domitian  enriched 
his  father's  building,  and  had  a  statue  of  the  god 
modelled  in  massive  gold.  It  was  here  that  the  pon- 
tiffs sacrificed,  and  here  that  the  triumphant  generals 
used  to  ascend.  The  era  of  polytheism  coming  to  an 
end,  the  temple  gave  way  to  a  church  dedicated  to 
the  Virgin  mother,  frn*  its  embellishment  they  took, 
even  from  imperial  palaces,  granite  columns  from 
Egypt,  precious  capitals,  bas-reliefs  from  Greece, 
and  heaped  mosaics  and  gold  work  upon  one  another 
until  Avas  finally  consummated  the  task  of  three  cen- 
turies. Michael  Angelo  erected  the  grand  staircase 
of  Avhite  marble,  by  Avhich  the  Piazza  is  reached,  from 
blocks  taken  from  the  palaces,  the  baths,  and  the  ba- 
silicas of  ancient  Rome. 

The  celebrated  Bambino  is  the  most  feted  saint  of 
the  Ara  Coeli  Church.  When  he  goes  out  a  proces- 
sion of  pifferari  accompany  his  coach,  a  grand  affair 
Avhich  was  acquired  by  the  Franciscans  in  a  some- 
what curious  manner.  In  1848,  the  people  having 
set  to  work  to  burn  the  pope's  carriages,  one  of  the 


184  KOME. 

triumvirs  bethought  him,  in  order  to  save  the  finest, 
of  making  a  present  of  it  to  the  Bambino.  And  on 
his  return  Pius  IX.  had  some  scruples  about  taking 
back  Avhat  had  been  offered  to  God.*  The  image, 
cut  from  a  block  of  cedar  by  a  monk  of  the  sixteenth 
century,  is  transported  in  his  royal  equipage  to  the 
bed  of  the  sick,  who  send  for  him  when  medicine  has 
no  power.  During  the  Presepio,  however,  he  is  never 
moved,  and  on  the  first  day  of  the  year  the  sick  come 
themselves  to  do  him  homage. 

The  church  of  Ara  Coeli  is  said  to  date  as  far  back 
as  595.  The  mass  of  antique  fragments  and  remains 
which  went  into  its  construction  give  it  a  very  hybrid 
and  curious  appearance.  Differing  in  module,  the 
columns  do  not  present  three  capitals  that  are  alike : 
one  of  them,  above  the  third  column  to  the  left  as  you 
enter  by  the  great  nave,  bears  on  the  abacus  this 
singular  inscription,  though  the  characters  seem  an- 
cient enough  :  E  cvbicvlo  avg.  Gilded  Avith  gold 
taken  from  the  Turks  at  the  battle  of  Lepanto,  the 
church  is  richly  paved,  but  the  borderings,  in  ojius 
Alexandriuum,  are  reduced  to  patches  by  the  pro- 
fusion of  sculptured  tombstones ;  those  of  the  four- 
teenth century,  which  abound  in  reliefs,  are  so  numer- 
ous, that  as  you  walk  through  the  church  you  trip 
at  every  step.  These  reclining  figures  seem  to  take 
the   places   of  the   living  Avho   once   frequented  the 

*  These  scruples  were  overcome  later,  and  the  Bambino  went 
back  to  his  own  modest  carriage. 


S.  MAEIA  IN  ARA  CCELI.  185 

building,  and  to  render  it  more  animated.  The  Tem- 
ple of  the  Ai'a  Cceli  is  a  veritable  museum.  It  would 
take  too  long  to  enumerate  everything ;  but  we  can- 
not pass  over  the  tombs  of  the  Savelli  from  1260  to 
1306,  in  a  chapel  in  the  right  transept.  That  of 
Pope  Honorius  IV.  and  the  monument  raised  to  his 
father  are  like  small  models  of  the  facade  of  a  Pisan 
church,  in  the  style  of  San  Miniato  ;  adorned  with 
rosettes  and  bands  of  mosaic,  the  Gothic  canopy  was 
designed  by  Giotto.  This  Pope  Honorius,  Avho  re- 
poses among  his  kinsfolk,  is  a  fine  figure,  that  the 
trumpet  of  the  last  day  wiU  not  awaken  without 
trouble,  in  such  deep  slumber  is  he  plunged.  The 
tiara  of  1283,  by  its  primitive  shape,  adds  still  fur- 
ther to  the  verisimilitude  of  this  repose,  for  it  is  like 
a  cotton  nightcap.  There  sleeps,  too,  another  pope 
of  the  house  of  Savelli,  Honorius  IIL,  who,  in  1216, 
succeeded  Innocent  III. ;  this  chapel  belonged  to  the 
family. 

Let  us  not  forget  near  the  ambones,  which  are  of 
the  twelfth  century,  and  remarkably  beautiful,  a  tomb- 
stone set  up  against  the  wall,  which  must  obhge 
Queen  Catherine  of  Bosnia,  Avidow  of  that  King 
Stephen  whom  Mahomet  II.  had  flayed  alive,  to  sleep 
standing ;  nor,  in  a  chapel  to  the  left,  the  mausoleum 
of  Philip  of  Valla,  a  Florentine  monument  of  rare 
delicacy.  The  tAvo  weeping  genii  who  bear  the 
scutcheons,  the  reclining  statue,  the  arabesques  of 
the  lower  part,  are  treated  in  a  masterly  manner. 


186  KOME. 

At  the  bottom  of  the  nave  close  to  the  door,  the 
chapel  of  the  Bnfalini,  dedicated  to  St.  Bernardino 
of  Siena,  was  decorated  by  Pinturicchio  with  fres- 
coes which  rank  among  his  very  finest  works  :  the 
death  of  the  saint,  who  has  had  himself  laid  on  a  bier, 
where  he  expires  in  the  midst  of  his  religious  breth- 
ren, is  a  most  skilful  composition.  This  master  suc- 
ceeded in  attaining  style  without  sacrificing  senti- 
ment :  we  can  readily  recognize  his  Avork  by  merely 
raising  our  eyes  to  the  vaulted  ceiling,  where  he  has 
painted  the  four  evangelists.  Camuccini  has  restored 
with  both  talent  and  discretion  these  precious  paint- 
ings, on  Avhich  one  of  the  most  illustrious  artists  of  a 
great  epoch  worked  with  love  and  humility,  though 
he  knew  quite  well  that  they  woidd  be  ill  lighted. 
On  a  bright  morning,  however,  one  can  manage  to 
make  them  out  fairly  avcU,  and  I  used  often  to  stop 
on  my  way  to  the  hospitable  library  of  tlie  minor 
brothers  of  St.  Francis,  installed  in  the  convent, 
which  seems  to  balance  itself  at  the  back  of  the  Capi- 
toline  slope.  You  enter  it  by  a  charming  doorway, 
which  admits  to  the  church  as  well.  I  recall  wide 
corridors  with  ogival  vaults  tinted  with  pale  gleams 
of  light,  along  which  one  might  summon  the  shade 
of  a  St.  Bruno ;  as  well  as  a  cloister  in  two  tiers, 
austere,  of  fine  style,  which  had  the  air  of  a  Thebaid, 
three  paces  away  from  the  Capitol  and  its  museums. 
This  convent,  at  the  time  of  the  jubilee  of  1450,  when 
St.  Bernardino  of  Siena  was  canonized,  received  in 


THE  ANCIENT  BRIDGES.  187 

general   chapter   three   thousand  brethren   from  the 
houses  founded  bj  their  blessed  patron.* 

The  Tiber,  which  is  rapid,  wide,  and  deep,  sepa- 
rates into  two  channels  in  the  middle  of  Rome,  leav- 
ing an  island  between,  which  is  tolerably  populous  ; 
you  reach  it  by  a  bridge  of  stone,  built  by  Fabricius, 
under  the  Republic ;  and  leaving  it  by  the  Ponte 
Cestio,  restored  by  Valentinian,  Valens,  and  Gratian, 
come  out  upon  the  right  bank,  in  that  Trasteverine 
quarter  Avhich  Ancus  Martins  fortified  against  the 
Etruscans.  At  the  present  time  the  bridge  of  Fabri- 
cius is  called  Quattro  Capi,  because  they  have  pre- 
served at  the  extremity  of  its  parapet  a  couple  of 
Hermes  with  four  faces,  which  in  old  days  supported 
the  bronze  balusters.  As  for  the  bridge  of  Gratian,  it 
is  now  the  bridge  of  St.  Bartholomew,  a  title  borroAved 
from  the  adjoining  church,  of  which  we  shall  say  a 
few  words,  after  observing  that  Rome  possesses  four 
ancient  bridges,  the  oldest  of  which,  the  Ponte  Rotto, 
was  finished  under  the  censorship  of  Scipio  Africanus, 
and  that  this  city  furnished  the  model  for  all  the 
stone  bridges  constructed  in  the  ancient  world.  St. 
Bartholomew  replaces,  at  what  may  be  called  the 
stern  of  the  island,  a  temple  to  ^sculapius,  erected 
in  the  year  401  of  Rome,  an  age  already  respectable; 
but  the  isle  itself  is  an  historical  monument  of  a  stiU 
more  remote  century. 

*  Pulled  down  in  1886  to  make  room  for  the    monument  of 
Victor  Emanuel  II. 


188  KOME. 

It  has  been  asked  whether  the  granite  columns 
which  separate  the  aisles  from  the  nave  in  St.  Bar- 
tholomew of  the  Island  are  not  a  part  of  the  original 
Temple  of  ^sculapius.  They  are  small,  which  di- 
minishes the  improbability  ;  but  their  too  cylindrical 
proportions  seem  to  point  to  a  more  recent  date. 
Two  of  these  pillars  are  of  the  marble  called  onion- 
peel  ;  cippolino,  and  even  granite,  under  the  repub- 
lic before  the  dictatorship  of  Sulla,  were  not  in  fre- 
quent use.  The  church  was  founded  about  the  year 
1000.  Its  great  treasure,  and  probably  its  very 
raison  d  etre,  is  a  large  and  fine  urn  of  porphyry, 
under  the  high  altar,  in  which  are  collected  the  relics 
of  the  four  martyrs,  Bartholomew,  Paulinus,  Exuper- 
antius,  and  Marcel,  Avhich  the  Emperor  Otto  III.  is 
supposed  to  have  brought  to  Rome.  The  preachers 
in  this  church  during  the  last  week  in  December 
are  children  scarcely  out  of  their  nurse's  arms  ;  a 
representation  of  the  Nativity  being  given  at  the 
same  time.  But  its  Presepio  and  even  that  of 
the  Ara  Cceli  are  nothing  compared  with  the  one 
which  chance  revealed  to  me  on  the  top  of  a  dun- 
geon. Of  all  these  representations  this  is  the  most 
original,  the  most  popular,  and  the  least  known  by 
strangers,  for  it  has  never  been  described  by  any 
one. 

The  Sunday  after  Christmas,  as  I  was  wandering 
in  the  Trastevere,  I  espied  down  a  narrow  alley  near 
the   corner  of  the   street   which   leads   to   San  Gris- 


PEESEPIO  OF  THE  TORRE  ANGUILLARA.      189 

ogonOj  a  large,  dilapidated,  gateway  set  in  a  block  of 
extremely  black  houses. 

Under  a  paved  inclined  plain  leading  to  the  first 
story  of  an  old  tower,  a  glass-blower  had  set  up  with 
his  furnace  a  complete  apparatus  for  moulding  bot- 
tles, and  had  spread  a  fine  gauze  of  soot  over  the 
entire  pile  of  wall  and  roof.  The  flying  skirts  of  the 
Trasteverine  women  who  were  climbing  up  the  steep 
incline,  the  white  robes  of  the  monks,  the  tunics  of 
the  soldiers,  the  many-colored  aprons  and  bright 
sleeves  of  the  stout  matrons  of  Albano,  with  their 
hair  dressed  with  silver  filigree,  came  out  all  the 
better  for  these  smoky  tints  :  one  after  another  they 
disappeared  in  the  mysterious  tower  like  a  procession 
in  some  legend  of  enchantment,  and  I  followed.  In 
the  interior  was  a  narrow  dilapidated  stair,  on  which 
the  people  going  up  pushed  hilariously  against  those 
wanting  to  come  down.  After  many  efforts  I  finally 
succeeded  in  reaching  the  top,  fully  expecting  to  come 
out  on  a  terrace  or  balcony,  but  to  my  surprise  I 
found  myself  at  the  entrance  to  a  sort  of  cave  or 
grotto,  in  whose  dim  light  I  could  faintly  discern  the 
outlines  of  a  fairy  landscape.  Valleys  and  lakes,  on 
whose  bosoms  were  reflected  green  banks  and  min- 
iature villages,  cattle  of  the  size  of  mice,  and  huts 
built  for  inmates  seven  inches  high  ;  raising  my  eyes 
suddenly  to  one  of  the  narrow  loop-holes  in  the  wall 
the  Palatine,  the  Aventine,  the  Coelian,  the  Janicu- 
lum,  the  buildings  and  mountains  of  the  real  Roman 


190  KOME. 

Campagna  assumed  gigantic  proportions.  Seen  be- 
yond a  meadow  of  green  cloth,  where  tiny  shepherds 
adored  the  miraculous  star,  the  Coliseum  justified  its 
name  in  a  quite  overpowering  manner.  Under  a 
light  in  the  centre  of  the  grotto,  softened  by  rose- 
colored  transparencies,  slumbered  the  infant  Jesus 
in  rose-colored  wax,  surrounded  by  his  kinsfolk  and 
his  ordinary  court,  composed  of  kings  and  shepherds. 
The  spectators  were  moved  Avith  fervor  and  dumb 
with  admiration.  Happily  there  were  only  present 
young  monks,  fine  country  lasses,  old  soldiers,  chil- 
dren, and  myself.  Transported  with  delight,  and 
with  the  utmost  simplicity,  we  passed  from  one  rustic 
house  to  another ;  and  from  the  peaks  to  the  plain, 
we  followed  little  boats  on  the  rivers  of  glass ;  we 
saw  before  their  door  artisans  at  work  putting  hoops 
round  little  barrels  that  a  tear  of  St.  Peter  would  have 
filled,  or  drawing  threads  through  tiny  sandals  that 
Queen  Mab  might  have  put  on. 

It  is  said,  and  I  should  not  be  much  surprised  if  it 
were  true,  that  the  blameless  Francis  of  Assisi  was 
the  originator  of  these  representations.  At  any  rate 
the  Preseplo  sidV  antica  torre  degli  AngiiiUara  is  one 
of  the  oldest ;  the  poets  of  the  people  have  dedicated 
sonnets  and  odes  to  it. 

It  is  before  the  not  very  interesting  church  of  St. 
Eustace  that  the  end  of  the  Christmas  festival  takes 
place,  concluding  witli  the  rejoicings  of  the  Epiphany, 
or  the  day  of  the  kings.      The  labyrinth  of  irregidar 


FESTIVAL  OF  THE  EPIPHANY.  191 

winding  streets  that  extends  from  the  Pantheon  to 
the  Piazza  Navona,  is  on  the  5th  of  January  the 
scene  of  this  popular  carousal.  The  mise-cn-scene  is 
of  a  gothic  simplicity.  Around  the  piazza  booths  are 
set  up  in  the  open  air,  where  they  sell  an  immense 
number  of  dancing-jacks,  punchinellos  from  Naples, 
and  grotesque  figures  of  every  sort ;  earthenware 
bells  with  a  very  sweet  tone,  little  drums,  steel  trum- 
pets. Bambini  of  colored  plaster,  and  so  on ;  they 
have,  too,  pinocchi  and  confetti,  and  things  fried  in 
oU,  the  equivocal  incense-offering  of  the  festival. 

At  the  third  hour  after  the  ventiquattro,  the  crowd 
begins  to  collect  at  the  approaches  to  St.  Eustace ; 
everybody  is  provided  with  noisy  instruments,  and 
until  after  midnight  this  assembly,  Avhich  includes 
every  class  as  well  as  every  age,  moves  and  tosses 
about  with  immense  tumult  in  the  narrow  space ; 
each  tries,  along  the  illuminated  street  where  they 
are  trampling  and  elbowing  one  another,  who  shall 
produce  the  most  formidable  uproar.  They  whistle, 
they  howl,  they  imitate  the  cries  of  savage  beasts, 
they  stamp  and  bellow,  they  push  and  are  pushed ; 
the  tumult  is  diabolical,  the  image  of  violence  is  on 
every  side,  but  there  is  no  ill  temper ;  brawls  are 
uncommon,  and  it  would  be  to  fail  in  the  etiquette  of 
this  feast  of  unreason  to  get  up  a  quarrel.  At  the 
end  of  two  hours,  deafened,  giddy,  and  fairly  intoxi- 
cated by  the  noise,  you  are  seized  Avith  convulsive 
laughter ;  you  cry  and  shout  without  knowing  why, 


192  ROME. 

and  sometimes  even  without  being  conscious  of  it. 
All  this  goes  on  before  that  famous  university  which 
Leo  X.  installed  in  a  palace  begun  by  Michael  An- 
gelo  ;  and  while  the  Romans  deliver  themselves  up  to 
this  debauch  of  riot,  to  this  delirium  without  a  name, 
the  gleaming  torches  bring  out  this  versicle  from  the 
psalmist  inscribed  over  the  great  gate  of  the  palace : 
Initktm  sapientkc  timor  Domini.  It  is  this  old  in- 
scription which  gives  the  university  of  Rome  its 
grave  and  noble  name — II  Collegio  Delia  Sapienza.* 

I  had  been  present  at  so  many  church  ceremonies, 
and  at  so  many  civic  festivals,  that  I  was  impatient 
to  see  at  the  villa  of  the  Farnese  those  divinities  of 
Olympus — finished  models  of  the  perfect  human  form 
so  prodigal  of  attractions — which  initiate  mortals  into 
the  science  of  the  beautiful.  It  was  then  with  a  cer- 
tain satisfaction  that,  remaining  in  the  tranquil  re- 
gion of  the  Trastevere,  I  walked  down  the  Via  Lun- 
gara,  and  passed  under  the  choked  archway  and  dove- 
tail battlements  with  which  in  the  middle  ages  they 
travestied  the  Porta  Setimiana,  which  got  its  name 
from  the  father  of  Geta,  and  was  restored  by  Alex- 
ander VI. 

In  the  Farnesina  Palace,  built  by  Peruzzi  for 
Raphael's  friend,  the  banker  Agostino  Chigi  Avho 
survived  him  only  a  few  days,  we  come  upon  that 
pagan    Renaissance    which    so    dazzled    the    Valois. 


*  This  festival  is  now  celebrated  in  the  Piazza  Navona. 


THE  FAENERINA  VILLA.  193 

Described  as  a  villa,  because  it  has  a  garden,  al- 
though it  is  in  the  city  nearly  opposite  the  Corsini 
Palace,  the  Farnesina  has  not  a  very  charming  ex- 
terior. While  the  purity  of  the  lines  impresses  an 
eternal  youth  on  the  edifice,  the  neglected  aspect  of 
the  uncultivated  grounds  gives  it  a  somewhat  dreary 
aspect.  As  soon  as  you  pass  the  threshold  you  arc 
confronted  by  twelve  great  subjects  designed  and 
begun  by  Raphael,  and  then  executed  by  the  eagles 
of  his  school,  covering  the  vaidting  of  the  vast  hall 
which  serves  for  vestibule.  Two  great  compositions 
divide  the  flat  part  of  the  ceiling — the  Marriage  of 
Psyche,  the  piece  which  has  suffered  most  from  re- 
touching, and  the  Assembly  of  the  Gods,  where  the 
figure  of  Mercury,  that  of  Cupid,  and  the  head  of 
Venus,  are  exquisitely  drawn.  This  vigorous  and 
free  piece  of  work  reminds  one  of  certain  freaks  of 
that  audacious  naturalism  which  delighted  Michael 
Angelo. 

These  decorations  are  in  the  taste  of  our  time,  yet 
Greece  would  have  admired  them.  The  simple  and 
rich  disposition  of  the  enormous  painting  forms  a 
feast  for  the  eyes  which  is  helped  out  by  a  series  of 
little  Cupids,  charged  with  sho\^dng  how  their  patron- 
ess mocks  at  all  those  gods  whom  men  have  com- 
pounded of  their  own  weakness.  Sprightly,  insolent 
with  life  and  beauty,  they  make,  across  the  em- 
pyrean, playthings  of  the  immortals  as  well  as  of 
their    attributes,    teasing    with    impunity    the    most 

13 


194  KOME. 

ferocious  beasts.  One  of  these  sprites  covers  him- 
self in  playful  naughtiness  with  the  buckler  of 
Minerva  ;  another,  the  prettiest  of  thera,  bestrides 
Cerberus,  brandishing  the  trident  of  Pluto.  For  is 
not  love  stronger  than  death  itself? 

Other  treasures  are  to  be  found  in  the  neighboring 
salon.  It  is  there  that  Galatea  sails  in  a  shell  drawn 
by  dolphins  ;  that  famous  fresco  of  Raphael  which 
has  been  so  often  copied,  and  Avhich  Richomme,  an 
unfaithful  interpreter,  has  made  popular  with  us  in 
an  engraving  where,  like  a  grammarian,  he  has  cor- 
rected the  master.  The  Farnese,  when  they  pos- 
sessed this  villa,  understood  well  the  worth  of  such  a 
gem  ;  to  throw  it  into  relief  they  left  the  panels  on 
the  right  and  left  empty,  confining  them  to  the  office 
of  bounding  the  gulf  in  which  Galatea  sports.  These 
vacant  spaces  contribute  further  to  concentrate  in- 
terest on  the  work  of  Raphael ;  they  tranquillize  the 
eye  without  distracting  the  attention,  and  the  giant 
Cyclops  who  contemplates  his  rebel  from  a  distance, 
hardly  disturbs  the  quiet  more  than  a  rock  would  do. 

Sebastian  del  Piombo,  to  whom  they  attribute  the 
Polyphemus,  does  himself  more  credit  in  the  small 
fresco  of  the  slumbering  Admetus  from  Avhom  his 
daughter  is  plucking  the  golden  tress  that  makes  him 
invincible,  and  in  the  Fall  of  Icarus.  The  merit  of 
this  painter,  whose  tone  is  generally  too  violent,  is 
that  he  harmonizes  here  by  a  certain  softness  with 
the  note  of  Raphael.      His  Juno  on  a  car  drawn  by 


THE  PAMPHILI  GAEDENS.  195 

two  peacocks,  which  is  placed  above  the  Galatea,  is 
not  entirely  eclipsed  even  by  so  formidable  a  prox- 
imity. The  painting  is  supple  and  bl(  )nde  ;  the  move- 
ment of  the  figure,  the  beauty  of  the  head  and  neck, 
the  line  of  the  shoulder  and  the  arm,  have  an  ele- 
gance that  is  particularly  rare  in  this  master,  whose 
passion  for  Michael  Angelo  made  hard  and  sombre. 

After  days  spent  in  exploring  a  city  from  one  end 
to  another  the  temptation  to  escape,  for  a  short  time 
at  least,  to  green  fields  and  fresh  waters  is  not  to  be 
resisted,  especially  if  one  has  just  been  dreaming 
mythological  dreams  in  company  with  Raphael,  and 
realizes  that  the  Farnesina  and  Corsini  Palaces  are 
not  far  from  one  of  those  charming  retreats  where 
the  mind  instinctively  conjures  up  visions  of  wood 
nymphs  and  sylvan  divinities. 

You  know,  reader,  that  in  the  Roman  Campagna 
the  small  properties  described  elsewhere  as  orchards, 
meadows,  and  lodges,  are  called  vineyards  ;  hence  so 
many  bas-reliefs  and  statues  found  among  the  vines. 
A  garden  is  a  very  different  thing.  This  term  often 
means  enormous  spaces,  comprising  groves,  meadows, 
hiUs,  ponds,  and  rivers,  with  ruins  and  scattered 
monuments  ;  such  are  the  Pamphili  gardens  on  the  site 
of  those  of  Galba.  Under  the  very  ramparts  of  Rome, 
and  but  a  few  yards  from  the  gate  of  St.  Pancras,  of 
warlike  memory,  they  have  all  the  features  of  gen- 
uinely rural  solitude.  As  the  approach  to  the  domain 
is  at  the  back  of  the  plateau  which  bounds  Rome  on 


196  ROME. 

this  side,  you  no  sooner  enter  the  gates  than  the  city 
disappears  from  view,  except  towards  the  north, 
where  at  the  extremity  of  a  valley  shut  in  between 
the  hills  rises  solitary,  the  enormous  mass  of  St.  Peter's, 
flanked  by  the  Vatican,  and  framed  on  every  side  by 
meadoAvs,  fields,  and  gentle  slopes,  like  a  colossal 
Chartreuse  lost  in  the  midst  of  a  Thebaid. 

The  gi-and  entrance,  built  like  a  triumphal  arch, 
was  constructed  from  the  ruins  of  an  older  villa ; 
through  it  Ave  reach  groA^es  of  oaks,  of  plane  trees, 
of  great  spreading  pines,  long  aA^enues,  aboA'e  Avhich 
the  branches  of  the  trees  are  so  thickly  interlaced 
as  to  almost  exclude  the  daylight,  beyond  Avhich 
the  plain  extends  far  out  of  sight,  a  kind  of  solid 
ocean  Avhich  the  other  ocean  made  level  in  old  times. 
From  this  shady  labyrinth  of  hill  and  dale  Ave  catch 
occasional  glimpses  of  the  suoavs  of  the  Apennines ; 
to  perspectiA^es  of  verdure  succeed  perspectives  of 
water,  beside  whose  cool  freshness  and  under  the 
shadow  of  the  lofty  trees  the  grass  gets  a  fineness 
and  brightness  Avhich  recalls  the  Alps  ;  in  the  daAvn 
of  spring  anemones,  A'iolets,  periwinkles,  primroses, 
and  cyclamen  display  their  mosaics  on  the  turf  be- 
neath stately  terraces  croAvned  Avith  camellias. 

Assuredly  the  gardens  of  Rome  Avere  like  this  in 
the  time  of  Virgil  and  the  poets  of  the  Empire. 


S.  MAKIA  SOPKA  MINERVA.  197 


CHAPTER    X. 

There  are  in  Italy  a  dozen  churches  which,  like 
Santa  Croce  and  Santa  Maria  Novella  of  Florence, 
like  the  dome  of  Siena,  like  S.  Clemente  and  Santa 
Maria  Maggiore  at  Rome,  combine  examples  of  ar- 
chitecture, painting,  and  sculpture,  "svhich  make  them 
rank  as  veritable  museums  by  whose  aid  one  might 
unfold  all  the  annals  of  modern  art.  Such  is  the 
church  of  the  Dominicans,  Santa  Maria  sopra  Mi- 
nerva, so  called  because  it  replaces  a  temple  erected 
by  Pompey  to  the  Virgin  of  paganism.  Nothing 
could  be  more  unexpected  than  the  first  aspect  of  its 
vaulted  roof  supported  on  pillars  without  either  cap- 
itals or  bases,  like  huge  trunks  reflected  in  the  pol- 
ished marble  pavement.  The  roof  and  walls  lighted 
dimly  from  above  are  of  a  bluish  green,  and  shine 
like  the  moist  sides  of  a  marine  grotto  covered  with 
lotus,  seaweed,  and  scolopendra.  The  monks  in  1855 
had  the  interior  covered  with  a  kind  of  stucco,  imitat- 
ing with  the  most  brilliant  coloring  the  tint  and  vein- 
ing  of  green  porphyry.  The  date  of  the  building  is 
about  the  end  of  the  fourteenth  century  ;  the  nave 
is  wide  and  fairly  high  ;  the  choir,  more  modern  and 
recently  harmonized  with  the  ogival  style  of  the  other 
parts,  is  of  fine  proportions  ;  a  series  of  chapels  very 


198  KOME. 

highly  decorated  open  out  of  the  rather  narrow  side- 
aisles.  But,  as  yon  enter,  you  are  so  struck  Avith  the 
green  and  lustrous  color  of  a  nave  that  duplicates 
itself  under  your  feet  in  a  mirror  of  polished  marble, 
that  the  rest  of  the  church  under  its  skylight  seems 
dark  and  empty.  As  often  happens  to  people  who 
pry,  the  first  monument  that  I  proceeded  to  discover 
was  one  of  those  most  hidden.  On  a  tombstone  set 
upright  in  a  deep  chapel  in  the  left  transept,  is  rep- 
resented in  relief  a  monk,  an  ascetic  Avith  hollow 
cheeks,  delicate  angidar  features,  and  a  wide  arched 
brow  which  accentuates  the  pensive  expression,  Avhile 
the  slender  and  knotted  fingers  indicate  at  once  manual 
activity  and  the  sentiment  of  the  ideal.  It  is  the 
only  known  portrait  of  the  angel  of  Florentine  paint- 
ing, the  blessed  John  of  Fiesole,  painter  of  souls  and 
of  the  heavens,  of  Avhich  he  had  had  glimpses. 
Who  does  not  noAv  admire  this  holy  artist  ?  Presi- 
dent de  Brosses,  Dupaty,  Beyle,  have  never  even 
pronounced  his  name.  I  could  not  refrain  from  copy- 
ing the  epitaph  of  this  patron  of  religious  artists, 
composed  by  his  venerable  friend  Nicholas  V.,  Avho 
died  the  same  year : 

HIC  JACET  VENER.  PICTO.  FR.  JO.  DE  FLO.  ORDIS 
PDICATO? 

Non  niihi  sit  laiidi  quod  eram  velut  alter  Apelles, 
Sed  quod  lucra  tuis  omnia,  Christe,  dabam  : 
Altera  nam  terris  opera  extant,  altera  coelo. 
Urbs  me  Johannem  Flos  tulit  Etruriaj.     mcccclv. 


Church  of  S.  Maria  Sopra  Minerva 


S.  MAEIA  SOPEA  MINERVA.  199 

Not  far  away,  under  the  high  altar,  repose  the 
remains  of  St.  Catherine  of  Siena.  Crossing  the 
nave,  and  passing  down  the  other  aisle  by  the  side  of 
some  Florentine  monuments,  I  reached  two  tombs  of 
the  finest  of  all  epochs,  which  leave  the  spectator  in 
doubt  between  the  manner  of  Maiano  and  that  of 
Rossellini.  Here  also  is  a  modern  bust  worthy  of 
mention — the  portrait  by  Tenerani  of  the  late  Mar- 
chesina  Spada,  the  sister  of  M.  Komar,  wdiom  we  used 
to  meet  in  Parisian  society.  Not  only  is  this  marble 
treated  by  a  skilful  hand,  but  the  expression  of  the 
face  is  at  once  living  and  of  a  singular  softness.  Let 
us  also  pause  before  the  charming  Avork  of  Cosmati's, 
which  crowns  the  mausoleum  of  a  French  bishop, 
whom  his  patron  is  presenting  to  the  Madonna.  The 
bishop  is  William  Durand,  Episcopiis  MimutensiSj  says 
the  inscription. 

The  sepulchre  of  Cardinal  Orsini  also  goes  back  to 
the  end  of  the  fourteenth  century.  The  monuments 
of  that  age  are  superior  to  those  of  the  following  cen- 
tury in  their  serious  calm  ;  Avith  them  the  last  slum- 
ber is  profound ;  later  on  death  becomes  a  triimiph, 
first  for  its  victim,  and  next  for  the  artist  charged 
with  commemorating  him ;  the  hero  continues  to  act, 
to  live,  to  command.  We  may  associate  with  this 
school  the  mausoleums  of  those  two  of  the  Medici 
who  are  not  at  Florence — Leo  X.  and  Clement  VII. 
Of  the  two  statues  in  sitting  posture  and  confronting 
one  another,  attended  in  the  air  by  figures  of  saints 


200  EOME. 

singularly  tAvisted  and  tormented,  the  best  is  that  of 
Pope  Leo,  which  seems  to  have  inspired  Frangois 
Bonivard,  the  prisoner  of  Chillon,  with  that  other 
portrait  recently  published  at  Geneva:  ".  .  .  .  savant 
en  Icttres  grecques  et  latines  et  davantage  bon  musi- 
cien  ....  a  la  reste,  bel  personnage  de  corps,  mais 
de  visaige  fort  laid  et  difForme ;  car  il  I'avoit  gros 
plutot  en  enflure  que  par  chair  ni  graisse ;  et  d'un 
ceil  ne  voyoit  goutte,  de  I'autre  bien  peu,  sinon  par 
le  benefice  d'line  lunette  de  beryl  appelee  en  italien 
un  ochial ;  mais,  avec  iceluy,  il  y  voyoit  plus  loin  que 
homme  de  sa  cour."  The  author  of  the  Advis  et 
Devls  might,  when  he  was  prior  of  St.  Victor,  have 
seen  Pope  Leo  X.  close. 

Very  different  from  his  uncle,  Clement  VII.  was 
slender,  with  large  regular  features,  and  a  certain  ex- 
pression of  fine  impassibility  which  lent  itself  to  scidp- 
ture.  Yet  his  statue  by  Bacio  Biggio  is  inferior  to 
that  of  Leo  X.  by  Raphael  of  IMontelupo.  The  bas- 
reliefs  with  which  these  tombs  are  surmounted  seem  to 
belong  to  the  end  of  the  sixteenth  century.  One  rep- 
resents the  reception  by  Leo  X.  of  King  Francis  of 
Valois,  and  the  other  shows  Charles  V.  received  in 
the  same  way  by  Clement  VII. 

Nothing  can  be  more  unlike  these  bas-reliefs  than 
the  four  great  tormented  saints  of  Bacio  Bandinelli, 
who  received  from  his  master  in  this  very  temple,  at 
the  entrance  to  the  choir,  one  of  those  lessons  in 
action  which  he  did  not  often  lavish,  and  which  were 


S.  MAEIA  SOPRA  MINERVA.  201 

still  more  rarely  followed.  The  Christ  bearing  the 
Cross  is  one  of  the  rare  figures  of  Michael  Angelo 
where  grace  dissembles  force,  and  where  that  her- 
culean gift,  Avhich  the  master  abused,  disappears 
under  the  finish  of  a  rich  and  soft  execution  ;  but  we 
must  know  that  he  began  this  work  in  his  youth, 
continuing  it  in  1520,  while  Federigo  Frizzi,  en- 
trusted with  its  completion,  introduced  at  the  ex- 
pense of  vigor  the  suppleness  of  a  high  polish. 

Ligorio  designed  the  superb  statue  of  thesevere 
Paul  IV.,  in  the  chapel  of  Thomas  Aquinas,  where 
Florentine  art  is  so  nobly  represented.  It  was  there 
that  Filippino  Lippi  painted  above  the  altar  that 
charming  picture  in  compartments  of  the  Virgin,  St. 
Thomas  and  Cardinal  Oliviero  Caraffa  5  it  was  here 
that  he  distributed  the  groups  of  that  Assumption, 
in  Avhich  the  apostles  are  so  finely  treated.  On  the 
right  side,  an  Auto  da  Fe,  which  represents  the  burn- 
ing of  the  books  condemned  by  St.  Dominic,  is  de- 
picted as  taking  place  before  buildings  of  an  ex- 
quisitely ordered  architecture,  while  in  the  distance 
we  descry  the  equestrian  statue  of  Marcus  Aurelius, 
which  stands  in  the  piazza  of  the  Capitol.  There  is 
also,  in  the  foreground,  a  marvellous  portrait  of  the 
general  of  the  Dominicans.  The  sibyls  and  angels 
of  the  vault  are  the  only  frescoes  which  remain  to  us 
of  RafFaellino  del  Garbo,  the  single  pupil  of  Filippino. 
Alas,  how  these  specimens  make  us  regret  what  time 
has  destroyed ! 


202  KOME. 

At  the  time  when  Buonarotti,  grown  old,  was  op- 
posing to  the  teachings  of  his  youth  the  sad  exam- 
ples of  his  decline,  the  adepts  of  the  grand  manner 
still  succeeded  from  time  to  time,  if  they  happened  to 
forget  themselves,  in  dreaming  some  glorious  dreams, 
Avithout  borrowing  from  the  exaggerations  of  the 
school.  Such  are  two  adorable  and  too  little  appre- 
ciated figures,  by  an  artist  whose  renown  is  mediocre, 
only  because  his  works  are  so  scarce — the  St.  Agatha 
and  the  St.  Lucy,  of  Sermonetta,  a  pupil  of  Perino 
del  Vaga. 

Going  back  as  far  as  the  most  brilliant  master  of 
the  ecstatic  school,  we  find  in  the  chapel  of  the  An- 
nunciation,Benozzo  Gozzoli,  the  smiling  and  animated 
disciple  of  Fra  Angelico.  His  picture  of  the  Annun- 
ciation, on  a  golden  ground,  is  one  of  those  works  in 
which  he  has  revealed  Avith  most  grace  the  secret  of 
producing  a  peculiar  kind  of  penetrative  emotion, 
which  is  the  great  beauty  of  these  early  paintings. 
A  cardinal  presents  orphans  to  the  Madonna;  an 
angel  is  near  her ;  the  Eternal  Father  appears  in  the 
heavens.  The  head  of  the  seraph  and  the  expres- 
sion and  attitude  of  the  Virgin  are  visions  truly 
celestial.  To  measure  the  progress  made  by  this 
respectful  and  timid  art,  it  is  enough  to  turn  one's 
eyes  to  the  great  crucifix,  covered  with  Giottesque 
paintings,  placed  in  one  f^f  the  chapels  of  the  right 
transept.  We  have  there  the  three  epochs  of  Flor- 
entine art ;  and  it  is  hardly  further  from  the  almost 


S.  MARIA  SOPRA  MINERVA.  203 

Byzantine  attempts  of  the  fourteenth  century  to  the 
soft  brilliance  of  the  artists  whose  faith  Savonarola 
had  tempered,  than  it  is  from  the  principles  of  these 
last  to  the  theories  of  Michael  Angelo  and  Raphael. 
But  -with  Avhat  swiftness  did  this  revolution  proceed ! 
When  Benozzo  Gozzoli  finished,  Sanzio  was  just 
about  to  be  born,  and  Michael  Angelo  was  beginning 
to  grow  tall. 

In  the  neighboring  chapel,  belonging  to  the  Aldo- 
brandini,  is  a  statue  of  Clement  YIII.,  surrounded 
by  the  tombs  of  his  father  and  his  mother,  adorned 
Avith  allegorical  figures.  These,  with  the  exception 
of  the  statue  of  the  Pope,  are  all  the  Avork  of  a  com- 
patriot who  lived  in  Rome  at  the  end  of  the  sixteenth 
century.  From  the  tomb  of  Francesco  Torna,  to- 
wards the  door  of  the  church,  to  the  feeble  monu- 
ment of  Clement  VIII.  we  may  measure  how  much 
sculpture  had  lost  in  a  single  century ;  it  was  a  pupil 
of  Donatello,  Andrea  Verrocchio,  who  carved  that 
fine  figure  which  sleeps  the  slumber  of  this  life,  and 
whose  pensive  and  happily  conceived  cast  of  features 
dimly  suggest  the  awakening  in  some  other  sphere. 
The  urn  and  its  ornamentation  betray  the  old  jeweller, 
a  true  masterpiece. 

Here  for  fear  of  foiling  into  mere  list-making  we 
must  stop,  omitting  a  quantity  of  works  of  the  six- 
teenth and  eighteenth  centuries,  AU  styles  are  rep- 
resented in  this  assemblage  :  close  to  the  entrance  is 
an   exquisite     Florentine    tomb    of  the    end   of  the 


204  KOME. 

fifteenth  century ;  in  the  vestibule  of  the  sacristy  that 
of  an  architect  who  died  in  the  early  years  of  the  fol- 
lowing century.  It  is  interesting  to  compare  these 
with  the  graceful  monument  which,  in  a  cloister  of 
rare  richness,  is  to  be  seen  at  the  side  of  the  tomb 
of  Cardinal  Agnense,  and  of  that  of  Cardinal  Ferrici, 
who  died  in  1478  ;  the  exquisite  and  Avell-preserved 
bas-relief  of  the  Virgin  between  two  angels  is  prob- 
ably due  to  Benedetto  da  Maiano.  Do  not  forget  in 
the  chapel  where  slumbers  standing  the  ever-blessed 
brother  Angelico,  to  look  at  five  remarkable  tomb- 
stones of  the  end  of  the  fourteenth  century,  which 
they  ought  to  re-erect,  and  over  two  of  which  they 
have  been  guilty  of  the  barbarism  of  placing  confes- 
sionals. It  would  be  well  too,  in  a  survey  embracing 
five  centuries,  not  to  disdain  in  the  Altieri  chapel,  so 
rich  in  African  marbles,  the  pictures  by  Baciccio  and 
Carlo  Mai'atti,  and,  a  little  further  off,  those  of 
Venusti. 

The  church  of  il  Gesii,  erected  by  Giacomo  della 
Porta  in  1575,  after  the  designs  of  Vignola,  with  a 
magnificence  worthy  of  the  Avealth  of  the  order,  fur- 
nished the  model  for  that  sumptuous  style  which  de- 
claims the  glories  of  God  in  the  taste  of  the  fine  world, 
and  which,  having  been  imported  among  us  by  the 
Society,  is  called  the  architecture  of  the  Jesuits. 

It  is  at  the  tomb  of  St.  Ignatius  that  the  Order  has 
displayed  its  most  dazzling  magnificence.  To  form 
this  shrine  they  depended  only  upon  themselves,  con- 


S.  ANDREW  OF  THE  VALLEY.       205 

fiding  its  execution  to  one  of  their  own  number,  that 
Father  Andrea  Pozzi,  who  at  the  end  of  the  seven- 
teenth century  practised  witli  talent  the  professions 
of  architect  and  painter.  The  chapel  is  richly 
adorned  with  lapis-lazuli  and  verde-antico.  The 
group  of  the  Holy  Trinity  has  some  tolerably  fine 
Angels  by  Bernardino  Ludovisi,  siipporting  in  the 
air  a  globe,  about  four  feet  in  diameter,  of  lapis-lazuli; 
it  is  the  largest  block  of  this  precious  stone  that  has 
ever  been  Avrought.  The  high  altar  and  the  tribune, 
the  pilasters,  the  friezes,  the  facade,  a  rich  and  classic 
model  of  that  decline  in  science  Avhich  with  us  has  lost 
its  license  and  its  Latin, — are  all  worth  looking  at. 

S.  Andrew  of  the  Valley,  with  its  somewhat  florid 
fa9ade,  is  a  large  and  very  rich  church  Avhere  Zam- 
pieri  painted  the  Evangelists  on  the  pendentives  of 
the  cupola.  These  figures  almost  make  one  think 
that  the  imitator  of  the  Caracci  ventured  this  time  to 
raise  his  eyes  to  Michael  Angelo  ;  for  the  rest,  we  find 
here  that  serenely  bright  coloring  which  goes  so  well 
with  the  architecture.  These  qualities  are  still  more 
marked  in  the  frescoes  of  the  tribune,  Avhere  the 
same  artist  has  portrayed  the  Glorification  of  S.  An- 
drew and  scenes  from  his  life.  Whatever  the  merits 
of  the  figures  may  be — and  that  they  are  full  of  dra- 
matic force  is  hardly  to  be  questioned — it  happened 
to  me  to  forget  the  actors  for  the  scene,  and  this  is  not 
infrequently  the  case  with  Domenichino.  In  the  sub- 
ject which  represents  S.John  pointing  out  the  Saviour 


206  ROME. 

to  Simon  and  Andrew,  the  landscape  has  a  charm  and 
invention  that  are  admirable ;  while  the  Crucifixion 
of  S.  Andrew  takes  place  in  a  splendid  architectural 
setting.  The  Florentines  of  the  famous  epoch  had  not 
so  much  style ;  nor  the  Veronese  so  much  purity. 

But  what  Ave  ought  to  see,  and  Avhat  cannot  be 
looked  at  Avithout  amazement,  is  the  enormous  cupola 
of  the  dome,  which  is  fifty  metres  round,  and  which 
Lanfranc,  the  malignant  rival  of  Domenichino,  has 
painted  Avith  a  spirit  that  may  be  called  practical 
dexterity  exercised  ^\ith  fury.  People  ought  to  come 
here  to  study  the  scientific  means  by  which  a  sAvarm 
of  figures  are  throAAai  into  A-ertical  perspectiA'e,  and 
made  to  fly  across  the  clouds  of  a  boundless  and  con- 
cave sky,  AA'ith  the  foreshortened  eff'ect  of  a  bird's- 
eye  A^ieAV  from  the  earth.  Let  us  not  leave  S.  Andrea 
della  Valle  AA-ithout  seeing  the  Florentine  tombs  of 
Pius  II.  and  Pius  III.,  interesting  remains  of  the 
primitive  basilica  of  S.  Peter,  banished  from  the  new 
one  in  consequence  of  that  reckless  passion  for  sym- 
metry AAdiich  has  in  recent  times  invaded  art.  These 
admirable  monuments  are  on  either  side  of  the  nave, 
with  their  pure  and  graceful  statuettes.  A  bas-relief 
croAvns  the  mausoleum  of  the  more  illustrious  of  the 
two  Sienese,  ^neas  Sylvius,  in  Avhich  the  Madonna  is 
seen  presenting  the  departed  pontifi*  to  her  son.  I 
haA'e  only  to  mention  in  the  Strozzi  chapel  tAvo  Avon- 
derful  flambeaux  in  Avrought  bronze  of  the  sixteenth 
century  :   you  must  look  them  out  though,  for  the 


THE  CONVENT  OF  THE  PHILIPPINES.         207 

place  is  so  dark  that  they  are  easily  missed.  In  the 
middle  of  the  nave,  a  stone  covers  the  remains  of  a 
celebrated  contemporary,  Father  Ventura,  who  sleeps 
at  the  foot  of  that  }»ulpit  from  which  his  voice  thun- 
dered for  eleven  consecutive  years.  He  died  at  Ver- 
sailles in  1861.  The  general  of  the  Theatins  reposes 
in  his  own  land,  for  the  church  belongs  to  the  Order. 
On  his  stone  they  have  cut  the  simple  epitaph  : — 

DEFUNCTUS  ADHUC  LOQUITUR. 

The  Convent  of  the  Philippines  possesses  a  very 
fine  library,  in  which  are  preserved  some  unpublished 
works  of  Baronius.  I  only  entered  this  establishment 
once,  accompanying  one  of  our  artists  who  was  anx- 
ious to  buy  an  old  tapestry,  which  the  society  was 
willing  to  part  Avitli  for  a  very  moderate  price,  so  it 
was  said.  But  as  soon  as  we  came  into  the  presence 
of  the  father  manager,  whose  ascetic  leanness  I  have 
still  before  my  eyes,  he  began  raising  his  price,  so 
that  in  spite  of  the  efforts  of  a  young  frater  who 
pleaded  for  us,  it  finally  became  necessary  to  give 
up  an  acquisition  that  we  had  betrayed  too  plainly 
our  desire  for.  As  we  parted  in  mutual  dissatisfac- 
tion, I  lost  an  opportunity  of  seeing  the  famous  Bible 
of  Alcuin  which  is  there  ;  the  young  artist  recom- 
pensed me  with  an  expressive  sketch  of  our  little  scene.* 

The  Roman  CoUege  is  an  imposing  and  vast  erec- 

*  This  library  may  now  be  visited  through  the  Roman  Society 
of  Patriotic  History. 


208  ROME. 

tion  of  Ammanati,  which  contains  many  Avonders, 
without  counting  its  treasures  of  erudition.  It  was 
founded  in  1582  by  Grregory  XIII.,  and  possesses 
Avhat  is  without  dispute  the  most  remarkable  and  in- 
structive historical  museum  in  existence.  The  nu- 
cleus of  it  Avas  collected  in  the  seventeenth  century 
by  one  of  the  most  learned  fathers  of  the  order,  the 
Reverend  Athanasius  Kircher. 

As  space  Avould  fail  me  to  give  a  description  of  the 
bronzes,  marbles,  terra  cottas,  in  a  word,  of  all  the 
ciiriosities  collected  by  Father  Kircher,  let  me  at- 
tempt to  make  up  for  this  by  recalling  the  enormous 
knowledge  and  strange  character  of  the  collector. 
Independent  and  original  as  he  Avas,  and  guided  by 
science,  he  ncA^er  failed  to  abandon  commonplace  re- 
searches to  foUoAV  up  clcAvs  that  others,  especially  at 
that  time,  Avould  no  doubt  haA^e  disdained,  and  of 
which  he  alone  could  appreciate  the  meaning  and 
the  value.  After  his  death  the  Jesuits  continued  the 
collection  ;  which  affords  the  means  to  take  a  unique 
course  of  archaeology  applied  to  manners  and  customs; 
but  it  is  difficult  to  examine  it  in  detail  and  to  study 
it  fruitfully,  as  the  museum  is  not  classed  nor  regu- 
larly divided :  catalogues  are  also  wanted,  and  it  is 
forbidden  to  take  the  slightest  sketch,  or  even  to  jot 
doAvn  the  smallest  memorandum  in  one's  note-book.* 

A  large  framework  of  wall,  in  Avhich  are  tAvo  wide 

*  Tlie  Kircherian  Musehin  is  now  the  property  of  the  Gov- 
ernment, anJ  has  been  much  enlarged  and  classified. 


THE  POKTA  MAGGIORE.  209 

arches,  and  three  piers, — there  in  all  its  simplicity  is 
the  Porta  Maggiore,  its  austere  and  solid  character 
according  well  with  its  rough  finish.  The  fagade  is 
adorned  with  what  may  be  called  a  speaking  orna- 
mentation ;  three  inscriptions  placed  one  over  another, 
cut  in  handsome  capitals  on  their  white  pages,  tell  of 
the  building  of  the  aqueduct,  of  which  the  gate  forms 
a  part,  by  Claudius,  the  son  of  Drusus,  and  its  resto- 
rations under  Vespasian  and  Titus. 

On  the  exterior  is  the  tomb  of  Marcius  Virgilius 
Eurysaces,  baker  and  provision  dealer ;  some  freed- 
man  of  Greek  origin,  whose  history  dates  back  to  the 
last  years  of  the  Roman  republic.  The  second  story 
of  the  tomb  is  made  of  stone  mortars  standing  one 
against  the  other,  like  sacks  of  corn  in  a  row ;  the 
bas-reliefs  of  the  frieze  represent  the  processes  of 
baking  in  the  time  of  Marius  or  of  Caesar. 

Beyond  the  Porta  Maggiore,  and  almost  parallel 
with  the  aqueducts,  of  which  Aurelian  and  Honorius 
made  a  rampart,  runs  the  old  Prsenestine  road  with 
its  ancient  paving.  Five  or  six  aqueducts  cross  one 
another  in  this  plateau,  their  great  arches  rising 
against  the  sky,  and  continued  in  the  background  by 
other  ruins. 

In  the  middle  of  a  neglected  garden,  on  the  north- 
ern slope  of  the  Esquiline  garden,  I  perceived  a  ruin 
many  a  time  used  by  Poussin  and  Claude  of  Lor- 
raine. It  is  a  polygon  of  ten  sides,  lined  with  niches 
for  statues  rather  like  chapels,  and  is  known  by  the 

14 


210  EOME. 

name  of  Minerva  Medica.  The  Minerva  called  Med- 
ica  has  nothing  in  common  with  ^scidapius  nor  Avith 
Minerva  5  so  little  so,  that  this  charming  pavilion  was 
once  a  gay  boudoir  in  the  gardens  of  Valerian  and 
Gallienus,  and  there  were  fomid  in  it  the  divinities 
usually  honored  in  such  rustic  retreats — Pomona, 
Adonis,  Venus,  Hercules,  a  Faun,  and  even  the 
beautiful  Antinoiis. 

I  have  reserved  to  close  this  chapter  Avith,  and 
serve  as  an  introduction  to  the  next,  the  church  of 
S.  Martino  ai  Monti,  situated  on  the  Viminal,  on  the 
site  of  the  baths  of  Trajan. 

This  church  Avas  erected  in  the  beginning  of  the 
sixth  century  by  S.  Symmachus  on  the  site  of  one 
still  older,  founded  by  S.  Sylvester,  who  here  pre- 
sided over  the  council  of  424.  BeloAV  the  church  of 
Symraachus  there  is  an  ancient  crypt  paved  Avith 
black  and  AA^hite  mosaics,  Avhich  AA^as  formerly  a  part 
of  the  baths  of  Trajan.  S.  Martino  has  no  ceiling; 
the  wood-work  of  the  roof  being  supported  on  twenty- 
four  ancient  Corinthian  columns  of  precious  marble. 
Here  is  buried  Pope  Martin,  Avhom  Constant  II.  sent 
to  end  his  days  in  exile  in  the  depth  of  the  Cher- 
sonese, because  he  had  condemned  the  heresy  of  the 
Monothelites.  Let  us  also  note  a  small  mosaic  of  the 
seventh  century,  Avliich  is  very  curious  though  dam- 
aged. As  at  S.  Agnes  and  Santa  Maria  in  the  Tras- 
tevere,  I  remarked  that  the  Pope  aKvays  wore  a  slip- 
per Avith  a  cross  embroidered  on  it,  and  that,  as  in  all 


S.  MAKTINO  AI  MONTI.  211 

the  other  figures  of  the  sovereign  pontiff,  the  metro- 
politan of  Rome  has  no  crosier.  A  cross  is  drawn 
upon  tlie  shpper,  so  that  when  people  kiss  the  foot 
of  the  father  of  the  faithful,  the  homage  is  addressed 
to  the  symbol  and  not  to  the  man.  There  have  been 
refinements  in  humility  resorted  to,  ever  since  S. 
Gregory  the  Great  adopted  and  transmitted  the  for- 
mula, ScrvHS  scrvorntn  Del;  but  this  is  more  laudable 
in  intention  than  in  fact,  for  the  cross  might  be  more 
suitably  placed  than  on  a  slipper.  The  absence  of 
the  crosier  among  the  insignia  of  the  papacy  is  ex- 
plained by  a  legend  that  Innocent  III.  will  toll  us  in 
a  very  few  words.  "  The  Roman  pontiff  has  no  pas- 
toral staff,  because  the  blessed  apostle  Peter  gave  his 
to  Eucherius,  first  bishop  of  Trier,  to  use  to  awaken 
Maturnus  from  the  dead,  whom  he  had  sent  with 
Valerius  to  preach  the  gospel  to  the  Teutonic  nation, 
and  ]\Iaturnus  succeeded  Eucherius.  This  staff  is 
still  preserved  at  Trier  with  the  greatest  veneration." 
(De  Sacrif.  Miss.,  c.  vi.)  S.  Thomas  Aquinas  com- 
pletes the  story  as  follows  :  '^  The  Roman  pontiff  does 
not  use  a  staff,  because  S.  Peter  sent  his  to  resus- 
citate one  of  his  disciples,  who  Avas  made  bishop  of 
Trier.  This  is  why  the  popes  only  carry  the  pastoral 
staff  in  the  diocese  of  Trier,  and  not  in  other  dioceses." 
What  especially  attracted  me  to  the  church  was 
the  desire  to  see  a  series  of  frescoes  that  a  Carmelite 
prior  had  painted  on  the  walls  of  the  aisles.  They 
are  composed  in  a  bright,  luminous  tone,  and  are  by 


212  ROME. 

the  brother-in-law  and  best  disciple  of  Poussin.  I 
meant  also  to  examine  two  older  paintings,  which  are 
documents  of  great  price.  One  represents  St.  John 
Lateran  before  the  restorations  which  have  modern- 
ized it ;  the  other,  the  interior  of  the  ancient  basilica 
of  S.  Peter  of  the  Vatican,  just  as  it  was  under 
Nicholas  v.,  and  consequently  as  it  was  when  erected 
by  Constantine  in  326.  Violet  le  Due  copied  this 
fresco  Avith  his  usual  photographic  precision,  and  had 
the  kindness  to  place  the  drawing  at  my  disposal.  In 
it  we  recognize  the  spot  that  was  formerly  occupied 
by  the  ancient  bronze  statue  of  the  apostle ;  we  see 
that,  even  at  that  time,  they  descended  at  the  end  of 
the  great  nave  to  the  Confession  of  S.  Peter  |  and 
that  the  aisles,  to  the  number  of  five,  were  separated 
by  Corinthian  columns,  raised  by  six  steps  above  the 
central  nave,  a  unique  arrangement,  I  believe.  Some 
engravings  of  G.  Battista  Falda,  that  have  become 
rare,  show  us  the  exterior ;  we  see  the  cloister  with 
its  monumental  cone  in  the  middle  under  a  small 
shrine;  then  the  portico  and  the  facade  of  the  church, 
which  were  adorned  with  mosaics ;  the  belfries,  one 
of  the  eleventh  century,  massive  and  thick,  the  other 
more  meagre  and  less  ancient,  Avhicli  rose  above  the 
Loggia,  close  by  the  side  of  the  modest  and  classical 
entry  to  the  Vatican  residence. 

These  reminiscences  lead  us,  by  a  chronological 
path,  from  the  Esquiline  to  the  Vatican,  and  from 
San  Martino  ai  Monti  to  the  basilica  of  S.  Peter. 


THE  COLONNADE  OF  BERNINI.  213 


CHAPTER    XI. 

Issuing  from  the  Piazza  Rusticucci,  you  enter  tlie 
circle  of  Doric  columns  Avhicli  mark  the  ellipsoid  out- 
line of  an  immense  space,  and  are  at  once  struck  with 
the  apparent  unity  of  these  vast  constructions,  com- 
menced in  1450  and  carried  on  for  over  two  centuries 
and  a  half.  The  more  we  look  at  these  erections,  the 
more  astonished  we  are,  as  we  recall  the  names  of 
Bramante,  of  the  two  San  Galli,  of  Raphael,  of 
Peruzzi,  of  Michael  Angelo,  and  of  Vignola,  the 
principal  masters  of  the  first  century  of  the  building. 
The  circular  colonnade  of  Bernini,  nearly  three  hun- 
dred columns  set  in  four  rows  and  leaving  between 
them  a  central  passage  for'  carriages — this  enormous 
phantasy  is  the  manifesto  of  a  style  which  subor- 
dinates utility  to  symmetry,  and  rules,  to  decorative 
effect :  these  two  hundred  and  eighty-four  columns, 
which  are  strong  enough  to  support  the  palaces  of 
Semiramis,  support  nothing  at  all ;  they  are  placed 
there  for  show ;  they  are  the  feet  of  two  banqueting 
tables  set  for  a  congress  of  giants,  on  which  are  drawn 
up  in  a  row  ninety-six  statues  from  three  to  four 
yards  in  height  which  from  a  distance  cannot  be  dis- 
tinguished, and  which  you  do  not  see  any  better  when 


214  ROME. 

you  are  near.  For  that  matter,  no  one  looks  at  them; 
such  is  the  fate  of  works  of  art  that  are  lavished  out 
of  place. 

We  cannot  deny  that  this  colonnade,  connecting 
itself  with  the  piazza  by  those  two  sweeping  curves, 
is  an  imposing  conception.  It  is  still  more  so  on 
paper  I  it  would  have  its  effect  if  one  could  take  a  bird's- 
eye  survey  of  the  whole  ;  but  it  would  be  only  too 
easy  to  show  that  this  plan  is  a  theoretic  expression, 
and  that  there  is  no  point  of  view  from  which  the 
whole  spectacle  is  to  be  obtained.  Too  large  for  its 
circular  shape,  the  vast,  useless,  and  unoccupied 
space  makes  one  regret  that  they  did  not  erect  above 
this  sublime  colonnade,  or  in  its  place,  the  irregular 
palaces  of  the  Vatican  court,  Avhich,  by  encumbering 
one  side,  throw  out  of  line  the  noblest  symmetry  that 
the  schools  have  ever  dreamed  of.  One  other  thing 
gave  me  a  constant  shock :  the  basilica  of  S.  Peter, 
for  the  glorification  of  which  this  immense  device  has 
been  contrived,  rises  to  the  skies  by  means  of  a  great 
hemispheric  dome,  flanked  by  two  other  smaller  ones; 
these  domes,  particularly  that  in  the  centre,  whose 
curve,  attributed  to  Michael  Angelo,  Avas  rectified  by 
Giacomo  della  Porta,  would  have  gained  by  rising 
above  a  rectilinear  construction.  The  conflict  of  the 
horizontal  and  vertical  arcs  of  a  circle  is  not  happy, 
as  is  proved  by  the  fiict  that  from  those  points  of 
view  where  the  dome  of  8.  Peter's  has  not  the  circle 
of  Bernini   for   a   foreground,  it  rises  with  a  much 


Basilica   of   S.   Peter 


THE  FAgADE  OF  S.  PETER'S.  215 

superior  effect.  Those  who  paved  the  piazza  seem 
to  have  understood  this  :  for  from  the  foot  of  the 
obelisk,  that  rises  in  the  centre,  they  have  made  a 
series  of  radii  in  white  stone  diverge,  wdiich  lead  the 
eye  by  direct  lines  to  the  four-and-twenty  steps  of 
the  church.  Two  sparkling  fomitains  adorn  the  semi- 
circles of  this  vast  arena,  flanking  the  obelisk — and 
that  is  why  the  obelisk  of  the  Place  de  la  Concorde 
at  Paris  is  supported  by  a  couple  of  fountains. 

The  facade  is  not  a  success,  as  everybody  has  re- 
marked ;  it  conceals  the  dome,  its  pediment  is  abor- 
tive, its  attica  ill  accented  by  a  row  of  small,  low,  and 
misshapen  windows ;  its  top  is  ridiculously  equipped 
by  the  thirteen  colossal  figures  of  Christ  and  the  apos- 
tles gesticulating  on  the  balustrade.  Under  the  frieze, 
with  the  inscription  of  the  Borghese  Pope  (Paid  V.), 
is  placed  the  central  balcony,  whence  the  sovereign 
pontiff  blesses  the  city  and  the  universe.  This  Avin- 
dow,  its  four  neighbors,  as  Avell  as  the  five  doors 
whose  entablature  is  supported  on  columns  of  pre- 
cious marble,  form  so  many  details  of  an  elegant 
regularity.  I  like  also  the  interior  gallery  running 
the  length  of  the  fa9ade  and  ending  in  two  vestibides, 
in  which  appear  a  couple  of  Aveak  and  characterless 
equestrian  statues.  One  of  them,  the  Avork  of  Ber- 
nini, represents  Constantine ;  and  the  other,  Charles 
the  Great.  Above  the  great  dour  they  have  placed 
the  NaAacella  of  S.  Peter,  a  mosaic  executed  in  1298 
by  Giotto  for  the  old  basilica  ;  the  Avork  has  been  so 


216  ROME. 

re-handled  as  to  have  lost  its  character.  The  last 
door  on  the  right  is  walled  up,  with  a  bronze  cross  in 
the  centre ;  it  is  that  of  the  Jubilees  ;  and  is  only 
opened  in  the  holy  year,  four  times  a  century.  The 
middle  entrance,  adorned  with  imperial  profiles  in 
medallions,  and  which  comes  from  the  first  basilica, 
is  the  work  of  Simon,  brother  of  Donatello,  assisted 
by  Antonio  Filarete  ;  it  represents  the  martyrdom  of 
S.  Peter  and  S.  Paid;  and  Eugenius  IV.  giving  audi- 
ence to  the  deputations  from  the  East,  and  crowning 
the  Emperor  Sigismund. 

In  Italy  they  do  not  close  the  churches  with  small 
doors,  soon  made  greasy  by  tlie  hands  of  the  popu- 
lace. Giving  a  literal  interpretation  to  Christ's  say- 
ing, "  My  Father's  house  is  always  open,"  they  are 
content  with  a  curtain  :  but  in  order  to  prevent  it 
from  flying  about  in  the  wind  this  curtain,  especially 
for  doorways  of  great  size  like  that  of  S.  Peter's,  is 
made  of  canvas  with  lead  at  the  foot,  and  lined  with 
leather.  This  plan  is  dirtier  than  ours,  for,  as  it  falls 
back  on  you,  the  leather,  which  is  plastered  over  Avith 
filth  from  centuries  of  hands,  often  gives  you  a  brush 
in  the  face.  However,  there  is  no  noise ;  you  enter 
as  if  through  a  miraculous  hole  in  the  wall  that  in- 
stantly closes  up  again.  This  sensation  is  particu- 
larly striking  at  S.  Peter's,  where  you  are  dazzled 
with  a  mass  of  splendor,  and  it  would  be  still  more  so 
if  the  longest  of  known  naves,  and  one  of  the  high- 
est, since  the   vault  is  forty-eight  metres  from   the 


INTERIOK  OF  S.  PETEK'S.  217 

pavement,  disclosed  instaiitcaneously  its  astonishing 
dimensions. 

As  the  eye  roams  through  those  vast  spaces  the 
sense  of  immensity  seems  to  grow,  but  the  instant  it 
pauses  to  study  the  details  the  edifice  becomes  smaller 
and  shrinks  into  a  mere  jewel  casket.  The  mind  re- 
fuses to  accept  at  once  the  idea  of  tlic  enormous  size 
of  each  separate  object,  it  is  only  by  degrees  that  it 
can  be  prevailed  upon  to  believe  in  the  reality  of  that 
vast  cavern  of  polished  marbles,  of  mosaics,  of  golden 
foliage  freshly  come  from  the  lapidary's  workshop. 
We  wonder,  too,  at  the  general  freedom  of  light,  and 
the  freshness  of  particular  tints  ;  tlie  Avails  foced  with 
stucco,  the  pilasters,  the  architraves,  the  pedestals,  all 
seem  shot  with  fine  shades  from  white  to  opal  and 
from  grey  to  rose.  The  lustrous  pavement  turns,  as 
we  recede,  into  mirrors  reflecting  as  on  the  surface 
of  a  lake  all  the  arches  and  vaults.  Finally,  what 
adds  to  the  mundane  splendor  of  this  official  basilica 
is  that  on  the  counter-pilasters,  playing  with  the  in- 
signia of  the  priesthood,  circle  those  charming  angels 
which,  first  emancipated  by  the  child  of  Cythera,  have 
for  three  centuries  sported  in  the  palaces  of  kings  on 
the  pages  of  every  allegory. 

Is  it  true  that  you  have  no  suspicion  of  the  im- 
mensity of  the  church,  before  you  have  measured 
yourself  with  Liberoni's  yellow  marble  angels,  six 
feet  high,  which  support  the  shell-shaped  holy-Avater 
vessels  ?      Not   altog-ether  :  the   thickness   of  the  air 


218  ROME. 

•which  iiicakes  the  other  end  of  the  nave  cloudy,  the 
microscopic  size  of  distant  passers-by,  have  already 
given  you  Avarning.  The  Angels  in  question  cause  a 
peculiar  illusion ;  the  mere  prettiness  of  these  naked 
children,  recalling  a  number  of  analogous  subjects 
smaller  than  nature,  hinders  you  at  the  first  glance 
from  conceiving  that  their  proportions  could  have 
been  exaggerated  to  such  a  point.  To  understand 
what  must  have  taken  place,  and  to  explain  their  dis- 
proportions, which  are  real  in  spite  of  the  theories 
which  have  been  strained  for  their  justification,  it  is 
indispensable  to  describe  the  various  phases  which 
the  structure  has  passed  through. 

Rossellini  and  Alberti,  the  first  interpreters  of  the 
intentions  of  Nicholas  V.,  confined  themselves  to  rais- 
ing from  the  ground  the  walls  of  an  enlarged  apse, 
next,  in  response  to  the  vast  designs  of  Julius  II., 
and  to  efface  the  renoAvn  of  BruneUeschi,  who  had 
constructed  the  cupola  of  Florence,  Donato  Lazzari, 
called  Bramante,  proposed  to  raise  in  the  middle  of  a 
Greek  cross  formed  by  four  long  naves,  a  cupola  on 
the  model  of  that  of  Agrippa,  but  enlarged  to  imtold 
proportions.  Such  was  his  ardor,  stimidated  by  the 
bold  and  ambitious  character  of  Julius  II.,  that  in 
1513,  after  seven  years  of  work,  the  dome  launched 
its  arches  into  the  sky  ;  but  erected  too  quickly,  and 
on  unsun;  foundations,  the  Babel  threatened  ruin,  and 
had  to  be  demolished.  Raphael,  the  successor  of 
Bramante,  who   in  taking  Ids   flight   "  dreaded,"  he 


PLANS  OF  S.  PETER'S.  219 

wrote,  "  the  doom  of  Icarus/'  Raphael,  assisted  by 
Giuliano  da  San  Gallo  and  by  Fra  Giocondo,  strength- 
ened the  pillars ;  curtailing-  the  chevet  and  the  tran- 
septs, and  adopting  the  design  of  a  Latin  cross. 
Balthazzar  Peruzzi  erected  the  apse,  and  returned  to 
the  idea  of  a  Greek  cross  less  developed ;  conse- 
quently Antonio  da  San  Gallo,  Avhen  he  replaced  him, 
preferred  the  Latin  cross.  They  still  show  his  plan 
in  relief,  rich  in  belfries  and  pyrauiidal  outlines,  a 
scheme  that  Michael  Angelo  depreciated  by  accusing  it 
of  savoring  of  Gothic.  San  Gallo  showed  himself 
more  penetrating  than  his  predecessors  :  divining  the 
rock  on  which  they  had  split,  he  supported  the  build- 
ings on  massive  foundations,  and  excavating  the  mys- 
terious soil  of  the  Neronian  Circus,  which  Avas  fur- 
rowed by  the  graves  of  martyrs,  he  strengthened  the 
whole  of  the  circumference  down  tf)  an  extreme  depth. 
After  that  they  could  build  on  substantial  foundations. 
This  Avas  paving  the  way  for  the  glory  of  Michael 
Angelo,  who  promptly  returned  to  the  Greek  cross, 
and  completed  the  drum  of  the  cupola,  to  Avhich  the 
rest  Avas  subordinate.  It  has  been  maintained  that 
he  meant  to  erect  a  portico  Avith  columns,  in  the  style 
of  that  of  the  Pantheon  ;  but  the  elevation  of  his  plan, 
executed  in  color  mider  Sixtus  V.  on  one  of  the 
cartouches  of  the  Vatican  Lil^rary,  contradicts  this 
assertion.  It  shoAvs  us  four  small  bays  in  a  cross  ter- 
minated by  semicircular  apses,  and  the  great  cupola 
surrounded  by  a  circle  of  statues  at  the  base  and  ac- 


220  KOME. 

companied  by  four  small  domes.  All  these  rounded 
masses  were  to  be  isolated  in  a  quadrangidar  space 
of  a  calm  and  severe  style  of  architecture.  Vignola 
and  Pirro  Ligorio  who  came  next,  in  accordance  with 
the  wishes  of  Pius  V.,  conformed  to  the  plans  of 
Michael  Angelo  ;  but  as  soon  as  Giacomo  della  Porta 
had  finished  the  dome,  Carlo  Maderno,  given  too 
much  freedom  by  Paul  V.,  made  haste  in  order  to 
show  his  genius  by  a  novelty— a  novelty  four  times 
tried — to  return  to  the  Latin  cross  by  elongating  the 
great  nave.  He  ended  it  with  that  frightful  fa9ade 
to  which  Bernini  joined  a  bracelet  of  columns. 

It  was  not  without  good  reason  that  the  greatest 
experts,  Peruzzi,  Michael  Angelo,  Vignola,  Della  Porta, 
were  bent  on  avoiding  a  conflict  between  so  enormous 
a  dome  and  the  longest  nave  that  had  ever  been  seen. 
As  it  was  necessary  after  the  death  of  Bramante,  in 
order  to  support  a  cupola  nearly  as  high  as  the  Great 
Pyramid,  to  more  than  double  the  thickness  of  the 
pillars  of  the  choir  and  make  them  enormously  mas- 
sive, these  great  men  understood  that  it  was  neces- 
sary to  bring  the  supports  of  the  nave  into  propor- 
tion, or  that  it  would  be  overwhelmed  by  them.  Such 
is  the  peril  that  Maderno  braved,  being  obliged,  in 
order  to  bring  himself  into  harmony  with  the  end  por- 
tion, to  give  to  the  pillars  of  his  nave  a  circumference 
so  monstrous,  that  only  three  could  be  placed  on  each 
side,  and  it  is  these  enormous  supports  Avhich  do  more 
than  anything  else  to  make  the  gigantic  church  look 


S.  PETER'S,  THE  NAVE  221 

small.  In  fact,  who  would  dream  of  suspecting  that 
a  nave  whose  length  is  divided  into  only  three 
arches,  is  the  longest  in  the  world  !  I  was  bent  on 
measuring  these  blocks  of  masonry  Avhich  give  it  so 
short  a  perspective  ;  each  pilaster  measures  thirty  of 
my  steps,  and  the  pillars  of  the  cupola  are  two  hun- 
dred and  six  feet  in  circumference.  The  ornamenta- 
tion with  which,  to  disguise  their  ugliness,  they  over- 
laid these  huge  surfaces,  is  necessarily  of  exorbitant 
dimensions.  Maderno  hollowed  within  them  two  tiers 
of  niches,  peopled  with  figures  eighteen  feet  high  ; 
on  right  and  left  of  these  niches  he  reared  fluted 
pilasters  nearly  three  metres  broad ;  the  entablature, 
seventy-seven  feet  from  the  pavement,  is  not  less 
than  six  metres  thick.  These  masses  glow  with  the 
splendor  of  marble ;  capitals,  architraves,  golden 
arabesques,  stucco  miniatures  of  the  great  arches, 
rosettes  on  the  vaidt,  attain  one  after  another  such 
exaggerated  size  that  to  the  spectator  the  accustomed 
scales  of  proportion  become  reversed. 

Nothing  makes  the  unfortunate  effect  of  this  want 
of  symmetry  more  marked  than  the  canopy  which 
siu"mounts  the  altar — set  back^vards,  that  is  towards 
the  west,  because  when  the  Pope  officiates  he  faces 
his  people.  This  canopy  is  not  less  than  eighty- 
seven  feet  high,  yet  you  would  never  suspect  it. 
Hence,  perhaps,  certain  warnings,  certain  landmarks 
contrived  by  Maderno, — a  man  of  superior  talent  at 
a  time  when  they  accomplished  great  ends  with  small 


222  EOME. 

means, — to  inform  the  public  that  the  heaviness  of 
the  construction  has  its  enormous  size  for  excuse. 
The  height  of  the  pedestals  and  bases  cannot  escape 
you,  for  your  own  height  serves  as  a  scale.  Along 
the  nave  you  next  meet  the  copper  lines  which  mark 
on  the  pavement  the  lengths  of  the  largest  cathedrals 
known.  By  reflecting  you  gradually  come  to  under- 
stand that  our  ogival  metropolitan  churches  of  the 
thirteenth  century  could  be  stood  in  pairs  in  S. 
Peter's;  but  in  spite  of  this,  memory  persists  in 
picturing  them  as  larger  and  especially  as  higher — an 
illusion  due  to  the  prolongation  and  multiplicity  of 
their  vertical  lines,  and  the  bold  and  aspiring  form  of 
their  vaultings. 

As  for  the  traditionally  professed  opinion  that  the 
dwarfed  impression  made  by  St.  Peter's  is  the  valu- 
able result  of  an  ideal  harmony  of  the  proportions, 
that  is  a  piece  of  nonsense  that  we  should  not  trouble 
ourselves  about,  if  it  were  less  widely  spread.  Surely 
there  would  be  a  ruinous  inconsistency  in  laying  out 
money  to  erect  the  largest  religious  edifice  in  the 
world,  and  yet  to  do  so  in  such  a  way  that  it  should 
appear  small.  We  should  rather  strive  after  a  con- 
trary result :  to  build  the  edifice  as  vast  as  possible, 
and  try  by  a  skilful  combination  of  lines  to  make  it 
seem  even  larger  than  it  is.  How  can  we  help  trac- 
ing, in  the  course  of  this  long  undertaking,  the  suc- 
cessive influences  of  personal  vanities  ?  Bramante 
and  Maderno  claim  to  surpass,  the  one  all  the  cupolas, 


S.  PETER'S,  THE  SALE  OF  INDULGENCES.      223 

the  other  all  the  naves,  and  their  ambitions  come  to 
nothing ;  the  cupola  of  S.  Peter's  is  higher,  but  it  is 
neither  so  deep  nor  by  any  means  so  wide  in  diame- 
ter as  that  of  Florence,  the  work  of  the  great  and 
simple  Brunelleschi ;  the  nave  of  the  basilica  ex- 
ceeds all  others  in  length,  but  we  only  notice  this 
advantage  to  mark  an  effect  that  has  completely 
miscarried. 

In  the  accomplishment  of  this  Avork,  in  which  pride 
was  ever  uppermost,  the  error  of  the  popes  lay  in 
putting  into  a  position  of  emulation  Avith  one  another 
a  series  of  men  of  genius,  each  one  too  illustrious  to 
consent  to  carry  out  a  rival's  design.  Each  of  them 
on  coming  forward  claimed  to  be  the  bearer  of  new 
and  wonderful  ideas  ;  the  people  were  full  of  joy,  and 
the  pontiffs  radiant,  but  it  cost  them  dear ;  for  to- 
wards the  end  of  the  seventeenth  century,  Carlo  Fon- 
tana  calculated  that  the  expenses  up  to  that  time  had 
mounted  to  nearly  152,000,000  francs.  To  meet 
this  demand  it  was  necessary,  from  the  reign  of  Leo 
X.  on,  to  coin  money  by  every  possible  means,  and 
hence  the  traflftc  in  indidgences,  which  furnished  such 
a  dangerous  weapon  to  Luther.  Rome  thought  she 
was  raising  on  the  tomb  of  the  apostle  the  monument 
of  triumphant  unity  ;  in  reality  she  was  working  for 
the  Reformation  :  the  breach  between  modern  art  and 
religious  sentiment,  of  which  the  last  champion  per- 
ished on  the  scafibld  of  Savonarola,  Avas  to  be  con- 
summated forever  by  the  pompous  style  of  the  edifice 


224  EOME. 

that  was  consecrated  to  the  temporal  glory  of  the 
popes. 

When  you  visit  S.  Peter's,  you  might  imagine 
that  you  had  gone  to  pay  court  to  some  one.  So 
many  prelates  and  pontiffs  in  their  dresses  of  cere- 
mony seem  to  be  gathered  there,  that  the  great  ones 
of  this  earth  drive  away  the  memory  of  saints  and  of 
martyrs,  just  as  the  decorations  of  the  building  cause 
the  idea  of  the  palace  to  master  that  of  the  temple ; 
the  Avhole  atmosphere  of  the  place  inviting  less  to 
prayer  than  to  conversation  ;  the  basilica  is  the  vast- 
est reception-room  on  the  globe.*  This  impression  is 
heightened  in  winter  time  by  the  fact  that  you  are 
caressed  by  a  soft  tepid  temperature,  an  inexplicable 
phenomenon  to  all  except  the  scientific  men,  who,  if 
it  were  bitterly  cold  there,  would  also  explain  why 
you  freeze  in  it.  The  mildness  of  the  air  will  allow 
us,  however,  to  seek  out  some  pearls  from  among 
much  trumpery,  while  the  reader  will  understand  the 
necessity  for  self-restraint  in  dealing  with  a  church 
where  we  count  forty-four  altars,  seven  hundred  and 
forty- eight  columns,  and  an  assemblage  of  three  hun- 
dred and  eighty -nine  statues.  On  this  account  T  will 
omit  whatever  leaves  no  trace  in  the  memory,  that 
is,  with  perhaps  a  score  of  exceptions,  aU  the  decora- 
tions of  the  transept,  of  the  apse,  and  of  the  aisles. 

*  Pius  IX.  is  said  to  have  observed  in  speaking  of  the  Cathe- 
ilral  of  Florence,  "In  S.  Peter's  man  thinks,  in  S.  Maria  del 
Fiore  he  prays." 


STATUE  OF  8.  PETER  225 

The  old  basilica,  situated  on  the  same  spot,  lasted 
for  eleven  hundred  years,  and  then  Pope  Nicholas 
v.,  though  with  pious  designs,  committed  the  ar- 
chaeological impiety  of  presuming  to  substitute  for  it 
a  temple  superior  to  that  of  Solomon.  By  good  for- 
tune the  Constantinian  basilica  was  only  pulled  down 
proportionally  as  the  other  rose,  and  fifty  years  after 
the  death  of  Thomas  of  Sarzano  one  half  of  the  old 
church  still  served  for  worship ;  thanks  to  these  de- 
lays the  present  edifice  contains  various  monuments 
which  it  was  Avell  to  preserve.  The  statue  which 
people  generally  visit  first,  by  way  of  paying  dutiful 
respect  to  the  patron  of  the  place,  is  the  seated  one 
of  S.  Peter,  a  bronze  of  the  fifth  century,  which,  to^ 
wards  the  year  445,  Pope  Leo  placed  in  the  basiHca. 
I  do  not  know  who  advanced  the  idea  that  it  was  the 
ancient  statue  of  Jupiter  Capitolinus,  but  it  must  have 
been  a  jest,  for  no  one  can  mistake  for  the  statue  of 
massive  gold,  which  Domitian  set  up  in  the  first  cen- 
tury, this  bronze  of  the  very  middle  of  the  decadence, 
stiflf,  poor  in  design,  and  with  the  right  hand,  which 
blesses,  and  the  left,  which  holds  the  keys,  cast  along 
with  the  rest  of  the  body.  This  statue  is  the  object 
of  such  veneration,  that  the  kisses  of  the  faithful 
have  polished  and  worn  its  foot.  It  is  doubtful 
whether  any  life-size  bronze  figure  consecrated  to  a 
Christian  hero  can  be  earlier  than  this.  The  S. 
Peter  interested  me  for  another  reason ;  among  the 
gems   preserved    under  the   glasses   of  the   Vatican 

15 


226  EOME. 

Library,  I  happened  to  notice  an  oval  medallion,  be- 
longing, according  to  the  opinions  of  experts,  to  an 
epoch  between  the  first  and  second  centuries ;  this 
object,  which  is  little  known,  has  on  it  the  profiles  of 
8.  Peter  and  S.  Paul,  modelled  after  nature  at  an 
epoch  when  art  still  joined  simplicity  of  style  to  sup- 
pleness of  execution.  Now  the  statue  of  S.  Peter, 
in  spite  of  cold  and  awkward  workmanship,  presents 
a  marked  likeness  to  one  of  the  profiles  of  the  Vati- 
can Library.  Conformably  to  primitive  traditions, 
the  apostle  has  abundant  and  crisp  hair,  the  beard 
curled,  rather  blunt  features  leaning  to  mobility  of 
expression ;  something  of  the  look  of  an  Arabian ; 
the  air  of  a  child  of  the  people,  with  the  healthy 
leanness  of  a  man  of  action.  This  prototype  of  Chris- 
tian ninnismatics  shows  Saul,  or  Paul,  to  us  as  Nice- 
phoras  has  described  him — quite  bald,  wath  long 
features,  aquiline  nose,  the  meditative,  argumenta- 
tive, and  half-wearied  air  of  a  philosopher  of  the 
porch,  worn  by  the  struggles  of  life  and  the  spirit. 
With  the  aid  of  this  comparison  we  are  rather  brought 
to  think  that  the  bronze  statue  of  S.  Peter  was  made 
after  types  traditionally  handed  down,  a  practice  quite 
in  accordance  with  those  of  ancient  Rome. 

At  the  bottom. of  the  nave  the  eye  is  attracted  to 
the  front  of  the  high  altar,  at  the  foot  of  which  are 
the  eighty-seven  lamps,  perpetually  burning  on  the 
circular  balustrade  of  the  crypt  or  Confession ;  you 
would  take  them  for  a  mass  of  yellow  roses.     Their 


S.  PETER'S,  THE  HIGH  ALTAR  227 

stems  are  gilded  cornucopicas.  At  the  foot  of  the 
steps  is  Pius  VI.  kneeling  in  prayer,  his  eyes  fixed 
on  the  tomb  of  the  apostles  :  his  last  desire,  as  he  lay 
dying  in  exile,  Avas  that  he  might  lie  in  this  burial- 
place.  Canova  has  impressed  on  the  martyr's  feat- 
ures a  sublime  aspect  of  devout  meditation  and  fer- 
vor. Adjoining  the  Confession  is  a  part  of  the 
oratory  raised  by  Anacletus  on  the  grave  of  his  pre- 
decessor, the  tomb  of  Peter  and  Paul  serving  for  an 
altar  to  that  chapel  of  the  Grottoes,  above  which  they 
have  placed  the  high  altar  of  the  new  patriarchal 
church,  on  the  very  spot  where  the  successors  of  S. 
Sylvester  officiated.  It  was  in  all  ages  a  venerable 
spot,  and  so  surrounded  Avith  an  atmosphere  of  awe 
that  Alaric  had  brought  back  to  it  in  solemn  proces- 
sion the  sacred  vessels  of  which  a  soldier  had  taken 
possession.  Urban  VIII.  caused  Bernini  to  construct 
the  Baldacchino  of  gilded  bronze,  with  its  twisted 
columns  loaded  with  an  entablature  which,  filled  at 
the  corners  by  four  standing  angels,  supports  a  globe 
surmounted  by  the  cross.  Nothing  has  been  so  often 
imitated  as  these  twisted  columns :  from  1630  to 
1680  all  altars  had  glories  like  that  of  the  Tribune, 
and  twisted  pillars  like  those  of  this  Baldacchino. 
We  ought  to  know,  in  order  to  explain  this,  that  the 
form  of  the  columns  of  Bernini  was  determined  by 
that  of  four  small  marble  pillars  of  the  old  Ciborium, 
brought,  it  is  said,  from  Jerusalem,  and  supposed  to 
have  come  from  the  Temple :  they  may  still  be  seen 


228  EOME. 

on  the  four  balconies  constructed  in  the  pillars  of  the 
transept.  It  is  from  the  one  of  these  balconies,  above 
the  statue  of  St.  Veronica,  that  on  three  holy  days 
they  display  the  great  relics — the  holy  face,  the  wood 
of  the  true  cross,  and  the  lance  of  Longinus. 

I  have  mentioned  the  dimensions  of  the  canopy ; 
taking  that  as  a  standard,  you  realize  almost  with 
terror  the  height  of  the  roof,  beneath  which  this  toy 
of  twenty-nine  metres  is  lost.  The  apse  is  one  hun- 
dred and  sixty-four  feet  long.  At  the  back  is  the 
presbyterium,  where  on  days  of  pontifical  solem- 
nity the  sacred  college  is  ranged  aroimd  the  pope. 
There  is  in  it  a  sumptuous  altar,  and,  in  the  middle 
of  a  glory,  the  Chair  of  St.  Peter,  sustained  by  four 
colossal  figures  of  bronze  and  gold,  which  represent 
two  fathers  of  the  Latin  and  two  of  the  Greek  Church. 
The  Chair,  by  Bernini,  is  only  an  outside  case,  con- 
taining the  curide  seat  of  Egyptian  wood  faced  with 
ivory,  Avhich  is  supposed  to  have  been  given  by  the 
senator  Pudens  to  his  guest,  the  apostle  Peter.  They 
show  in  the  sacristy  a  model  of  this  precious  object, 
Avhich  is  rarely  exhibited,  as  well  as  some  of  the  small 
ivory  facings  that  have  been  detached  from  it ;  they 
represent  the  Labors  of  Hercides,  and  are  of  indis- 
putable antiquity. 

We  know  that  in  Pliny's  time  the  workers  in  ivory 
already  veneered  Avood,  and  that  they  executed  mar- 
queterie,  either  with  shell  or  with  bits  of  ivory  cut 
very  small   and   attached  Avith   glue.     This  is  at  any 


THE  CHAIR  OF  S.  PETER.  229 

rate  a  sort  of  sedan-chair,  such  as  the  senators  em- 
ployed under  the  first  Csesars,  and  such  as  Horace 
describes  in  the  words  curule  chiir.  This  Pudens,  the 
first  patrician  to  receive  the  faith  of  Christ,  and  his 
family,  whose  history  we  trace  for  three  generations 
in  the  fimeral  inscriptions  on  the  loculi  in  the  cata- 
combs, may  out  of  veneration  for  the  memory  of  the 
first  bishop  of  Rome  have  piously  kept  and  trans- 
mitted to  the  Christians  the  seat  from  which  Peter 
had  spoken,  a  relic  of  Avhich  there  is  mention  in  the 
acts  of  the  primitive  church.  Tertullian  and  Euse- 
bius  prove  the  practice  which  prevailed,  of  preserving 
with  respect  the  seats  of  apostles  and  bishops. 

On  the  sides  of  the  Tribune  are  two  mausoleums 
which  deserve  mention.  At  the  foot  of  that  of  Paul 
III.,  on  the  left,  Guglielmo  della  Porta  sculptured  in 
marble  a  naked  and  half-reclining  figure  of  Justice, 
beautiful  enough  to  excite  the  love  of  Knavery  itself; 
no  Venus  has  a  more  chai-ming  head.  As  for  the 
body,  we  can  no  longer  form  any  opinion  about  it ;  it 
having  been  considered  more  decorous  to  have  Jus- 
tice clad  in  a  tunic  of  zinc  by  Bernini.  The  same 
artist  made  the  tomb  on  the  right,  where  Urban  VIII. 
is  represented  in  bronze,  seated,  with  the  right  arm 
raised  in  the  act  of  benediction.  Bernini  is  not  a 
man  Avhom  we  can  condemn  wholesale  ;  his  statue  of 
Urban  VIII.  is  calm,  yet  life-like  and  majestic.  I 
note  on  this  subject  that  while  the  seventeenth  and 
eighteenth   centuries  nudtiplied  in  the   churches   of 


230  KOME. 

Rome  and  even  in  S.  Peter's  pontifical  statues  seated 
and  giving  the  benediction  •  that  of  Urban  YIII.  is 
the  oldest,  and  the  becomingness  of  the  attitude,  as 
well  as  the  grace  with  which  the  sculptor  endowed  it, 
gave  the  first  impulse  to  all  the  numerous  imitations. 
But  it  is  curious  to  observe  that  none  of  the  succes- 
sors of  Bernini  has  succeeded  in  making  the  gesture 
at  once  paternal  and  noble.  Innocent  X.  at  S. 
Agnes',  Clement  XIV.  at  the  Santi  Apostoli,  are,  the 
one  affectedlj  grave,  and  the  other  clumsy ;  Gregory 
XVI.  looks  like  a  man  performing  some  operation ; 
Alexander  VIII.  has  the  air  of  a  Avarrior  threatening; 
Clement  X.,  of  a  man  calling  out  in  amazement ;  in 
a  word,  they  have  all  more  or  less  failed,  so  difficult 
is  it  to  seize  the  expression  of  a  gesture.  Bernini 
had  sought  it  in  nature,  while  the  others  thought  they 
could  make  it  their  own  by  studied  intei'pretation ; 
the  secret  of  every  era  of  decline  is  there. 

At  the  entrance  to  the  left  transept  is  erected  on 
Holy  Thursday  the  seat  of  the  Grand  Penitentiary, 
who  on  that  day  after  public  confession  gives  absolu- 
tion to  some  great  sinner  disguised  as  a  pilgrim.  We 
will  pass  by  the  altar  of  S.  Leo  without  allowing  our- 
selves to  be  dazzled  by  the  queer  cleverness  of  Al- 
gardi ;  his  bas-relief  of  Attila  is  a  virtuoso's  trick,  and 
nothing  more.  At  the  foot  of  this  altar  is,  not  the 
tombstone,  but  the  commemorative  monument,  of  Leo 
XIL,  bearing  the  following  inscription  which  he  wrote 
a  few  days  before  his  death : — 


MONUMENT  OF  LEO  XII.  231 

LEONI  MAGNO  PATRONO  CELESTI 

ME  SUPPLEX  COMMENDANS 

HIC  APUD  SACEOS  EJUS  CINERES 

LOCUM  SEPULTURE  ELEGI 

LEO  XII  HUMILIS  CLIENS 

HEREDUM  TANTI  NOMINIS  MINIMUS.* 

How  much  more  touching  is  this  humility  than  the 
funeral  paraphernalia  Avith  which  Bernini  surrounded 
Alexander  VII.!  However,  Cherubini  maintained 
that  it  is  good  now  and  then  to  see  and  hear  some- 
thing bad,  so  as  not  to  fall  into  it  from  ignorance. 

In  a  niche  near  the  Tribune  stands  the  statue  of  a 
sacristan  of  the  eighteenth  century  with  the  face  of  a 
cherub,  decked  out  in  ermine  and  laces ;  this  is  the 
way  in  which  they  have  appreciated  the  austere  and 
great  S.  Norbert.  On  one  of  the  great  piers  of  the 
dome,  near  the  Clementine  Chapel,  is  the  finest  speci- 
men of  those  Roman  mosaics  of  which  the  Vatican  is 
the  workshop  ;  it  is  a  copy  of  Raphael's  Transfigura- 
tion, and  has  such  accuracy  of  coloring  as  to  produce 
a  genuine  illusion.  This  is  a  picture  which  will  never 
fade  I  there  it  is  fixed  in  its  freshness,  until  the  next 
invasion  of  the  barbarians  ;  a  precious  art  that  ought 
to  have  been  imported  into  our  climates,  where  as 
damp  destroys  paintings  and  frescoes,  the  buildings 

*  "To  Leo  the  great  heavenly  patron  commending  myself,  I 
Leo  XII.  a  humble  client,  a  suppliant,  the  least  of  the  heirs  of 
so  great  a  name,  have  chosen  a  place  of  sepulture  i>ear  his  holy 
ashes." 


232  KOME. 

are  of  a  frosty  monotony.  Near  the  chapel  of  Clement 
VII.  Ave  pause  before  the  tomb  of  Pius  YU.,  a  curious 
monument  in  the  northern  taste.  I  will  not  comment 
upon  the  figures  of  Force  and  Wisdom,  descending 
from  a  clock  that  has  long  stopped ;  but  we  cannot 
help  admiring  how,  under  the  hand  of  Thorwaldsen, 
the  good  Pope  Chiaramonti,  Avhile  remaining  himself, 
has  been  able  to  Germanize  his  expression.  They 
have  seated  him  on  a  Greek  throne  perched  over  an 
Egyptian  sepulchre. 

Before  the  chapel  of  the  choir  where  occasionally, 
in  order  to  hear  the  practice  of  singing,  strangers  go 
and  seat  themselves  in  Avhite  ties  and  dress  coats,  we 
at  last,  beneath  an  arch,  come  upon  a  Avork  of  a  pure 
style,  and  belonging  to  a  good  period  of  art,  the  tomb 
of  Innocent  VIII.  Antonio  Pollajuolo  at  the  end  of 
the  fifteenth  century  made  it  in  bronze  for  the  old 
basilica.  What  grandeur,  after  so  many  vulgarities, 
has  this  Florentine  jewel !  Compare  these  four  Virtues 
in  bas-relief  with  the  great  BeUonas  of  the  Barberini, 
and  mark  the  nobleness,  the  personality,  of  these  two 
statues  of  the  pontiff,  the  one  representing  him  full 
of  life,  the  other  extinguished  in  death.  Opposite  is 
a  door,  and  above  it  a  coffer  of  stucco,  which  contains 
the  corpse  of  the  last  Pope  deceased,  until  the  demise 
of  his  successor. 

Before  reaching  the  Baptistery,  remarkable  for  its 
porphyry  font,  Avhich  is  the  upturned  lid  of  the  sar- 
cophagus of  Hadrian,  used  later  for  the  tomb  of  Otho 


fip.hoB?.  nf. 


Fresco  in  Sacristy  of  S.  Peter's  Melozzo  4a  Forli 


THE  PIETA  OF  MICHAEL  ANGELO.  233 

II,j  you  will  pass  the  pillar  on  Avhich  are  the  tablets 
of  the  last  of  the  exiled  Stuarts.  People  were  in  the 
full  fervor  of  monarchical  restorations,  when  Canova, 
having  to  portray  these  three  princes,  bravely  gave 
to  the  children  of  James  II.  the  titles  of  Charles  III. 
and  Henry  IX.  Above  these  two  Augustuli,  an 
Angel  and  Religion  exhibit  in  a  Lewis  XIV.  frame  a 
fine  medallion  in  mosaic  of  Maria  Casimir,  the  incon- 
stant and  adventurous  granddaughter  of  John  Sobieski. 
We  now  cross  to  the  chapel  of  the  Pieta,  a  word 
that  should  be  translated  Pity,  if  you  prefer  the  real 
sense  to  an  absurdity  of  custom.  It  is  so  called  be- 
cause on  the  altar  is  a  marble  group  representing  the 
Mater  Dolorosa  with  the  dead  Christ.  When  he  thus 
ventured  to  cast  this  corpse  across  the  knees  of  a  divine 
mother,  Michael  Angelo  was  not  four-and-twenty ; 
hardy,  already  original,  and  ingenuous  ;  stirred  by 
ancient  beauty,  but  imbued  with  Christian  sentiment. 
If  I  note  in  passing  the  ti'iumph  of  the  Cross  that 
Lanfranc  painted  on  the  vaidting,  it  is  only  to  rectify 
the  widely  spread  error  that  all  the  pictures  at  S. 
Peter's  are  in  mosaics.  Here  is  preserved  the  sar- 
cophagus of  Probus  Anicius,  Avhich  in  the  old  basilica 
served  for  a  baptismal  font.  It  was  Fontana  who 
designed  the  tomb  of  Christina  of  Sweden,  and  adorned 
it  Avith  a  colossal  medallion  of  gilded  bronze,  a  fine 
portrait  executed  by  a  master  hand.  The  mosaic 
copy  of  the  Martyrdom  of  S.  Sebastian  by  Domen- 
ichino,    the   original  of  which   is   at   S.   Maria   degU 


234  ROME. 

Angeli,  has  given  its  name  to  the  next  chapel ;  this 
mosaic  is  dull,  coldly  modelled,  and  very  inferior  to 
the   painting,  where   the   color  is  tender  and  lively. 
Nearly   opposite,  on   the   reverse  of  a  pillar  is  the 
mausoleum    by   Bernini   of    the   famous   Matilda   of 
Tuscany,  who  dying  in    1115  bequeathed  her  lands 
to  the  church  5  she  had  been  originally  deposited  in  a 
sarcophagus  on  which  the  history  of  Phaedra  and  Hip- 
polytus  was    sculptured,    and   which    John   of   Pisa 
studied ;    Urban   VIII.   in    1635    transferred    to    S. 
Peter's  the  remains  of  a  benefactress,  who  made  her 
vain  munificence  cost  so  much  blood.     This  figure  is 
a  purely  ideal  composition  :  the  head  grave  and  ani- 
mated, with  a  sweep  comparable  to  the  fine  things  of 
antiquity,  is  admirably  posed ;  the  vigorous  and  fem- 
inine arm  carrying  the  sceptre  expresses  resolution ; 
the  left  with  a  more  timid  gesture  hestitatingly  sus- 
taining the  tiara  and  the  keys ;  the  majesty  and  the 
pose  are  enhanced  by  the  arrangement  of  the  draperies. 
The  finest   and  one  of  the  most  spacious  of  the 
chapels  is  that  of  the  Holy  Sacrament,  where  before 
an   altar   surmounted  by  a  mosaic  copy  of  Caravag- 
gio's  Descent  from  the  Cross,  is  a  monument  in  bronze, 
verv  lowly  since  it  lies  upon   the  ground,  and  very 
simple  since  you  can  take  it  in  at  a  glance,  but  which 
is   in  my  eyes  the  marvel  of  the  basilica  :  the  true 
amateur  has  already  divined  that  I  refer  to  the  tomb 
of  Sixtus  IV.  executed  by  Antonio  Pollajuolo.     The 
wide  pedestal  rests  on  large  feet  attached  to  the  cor- 


THE  TOMB  OF  SIXTUS  IV.  235 

ners  by  foliage  ;  in  the  middle  the  pontiff  slumbers  on  • 
a  simple  couch,  surrounded  by  figures  of  the  Virtues 
and,  these  not  sufficing  to  illustrate  the  life  of  a  sov- 
ereign,— the  arts  and  sciences  ;  the  little  figure  repre- 
senting Music  is  one  of  the  gems  of  the  Renaissance. 
This  composition  is  rich  without  being  confused,  noble, 
simple,  delicate.  The  portrait  of  Sixtus  IV.  in  which 
the  intelligent  clear-cut  features  express  the  spirit  of 
a  doctor  and  saint  of  the  church,  as  well  as  the  high 
birth  of  a  man  of  old  stock,  is  among  those  which 
serve  as  guides  to  biography.  The  warlike  Julius 
II.,  who  Avithout  taking  death  into  account  had  re- 
solved to  raise  at  leisure  the  vastest  tomb  in  the  uni- 
verse to  contain  his  ashes,  sought  and  found  a  shelter 
here,  where  the  two  popes  of  the  contested  house  of 
Delia  Rovere  are  intertwined  like  two  oaks  ;  the 
second  happy  to  find  in  the  funereal  hospitality  of 
his  great-uncle  Sixtus  a  substitute  for  what  he  had 
dreamed  of  with  more  ambition  than  taste. 

In  the  chapel  of  the  Virgin  we  notice  in  the  in- 
scription on  the  tomb  of  Benedict  XIV.  the  first  ap- 
pearance of  a  practice  brought  about  by  the  impov- 
erishment of  the  pontifical  families,  who  were  no 
longer  rich  enough  to  erect  royal  mausoleums  to  their 
celebrities.  Those  Avho  acquitted  this  debt  to  Bene- 
dict XIV.  were  his  natural  clients.  Cardinals  ah  eo 
crcatl.  Such  is  the  custom  at  the  present  day, 
whence  it  follows  that  long  reigns  create  many  con- 
tributors to  the  perpetuation  of  their  memories. 


236  KOME. 

In  the  right  transept  is  the  mosaic  copy  of  one  of 
the  works  of  Nicholas  Poiissin,  a  subject  little  in  hai-- 
mony  with  his  tranquil,  epic,  and  in  some  sort  Racine- 
like talent:  S.  Erasmus  having  his  belly  opened,  that 
his  bowels  may  be  wound  upon  a  wheel.  In  a  niche 
near  the  altar  people  greatly  admire  the  large  figure 
of  S.  Bruno  by  Michael  Slodtz  of  Paris,  latest  born 
of  those  Slodtz  of  Antwerp  who  worked  so  hard  at 
sculpture  in  the  gardens  of  Versailles  under  Lewis 
XIV.  and  Lewis  XV.  This  figure  is  well  Avortli  look- 
ing at ;  it  is  the  apogee  of  anecdotic  and  amusing 
statuary :  that  is  its  merit,  and  perhaps  its  slight 
defect  also.  S.  Bruno  refused  to  be  pope,  and  so 
Slodtz  represents  him  as  tempted  by  an  angel  who 
offers  him  the  tiara  and  keys.  The  saint,  whose 
posture  is  somewhat  mannered,  turns  aside  and  re- 
fuses with  an  undecided  gesture,  all  the  more  expres- 
sive from  not  being  free  from  a  certain  clumsiness. 
To  be  ashamed  of  the  triple  crown  in  the  face  of  so 
many  pontiffs  who  have  worn  it,  and  in  their  own  basil- 
ica, would,  without  certain  modifications,  be  to  teach 
a  lesson  to  the  spiritual  sovereigns  ;  so  Bruno  refuses 
with  hesitation,  feebly,  at  the  same  time  letting  fall  a 
tender  smiling  glance  on  the  pontifical  insignia,  from 
which  he  has  difficulty  in  taking  regretful  eyes.  But 
then,  where  would  be  the  merit  if  Bruno  Avas  not 
tempted  f 

,     Let  us  finish  Avitli  a  work  of  very  varying  degrees 
of  excellence,    in    which    what   is   defective  is  more 


TOMB  OF  CLEMENT  XIII.  237 

widely  renoAvned  than  Avliat  is  sublime.  Canova  was 
in  his  early  maturity  when  he  designed  the  monu- 
ment of  Clement  XIII. ;  the  great  sculptor  then  under 
the  influence  of  the  Maecenas  of  the  north  and  acad- 
emic theorists  was,  I  fear,  bent  on  surpassing  himself. 
Whatever  the  cause,  this  construction  is  too  big,  too 
empty,  too  rectilinear,  its  virago  who  is  too  short,  and 
her  skirts  as  well,  personifies  Religion :  there  are  a 
couple  of  smooth  and  intelligent  lions,  one  of  which 
watches  while  the  other  slumbers  Avith  one  eye  open; 
the  Genius  of  Death  weeps  as  he  turns  down  the 
torch  of  life, — and  the  whole  atfair  has  a  coldness, 
and  an  insipid  attempt  at  poetry,  belonging  to  a  past 
taste  which  Avill  never  return.  But  above  the  sar- 
cophagus the  kneeling  statue  of  Pope  Clement  is 
avoAvedly  the  finest  representation  ever  executed  of 
a  priest  at  prayer,  the  whole  attitude  exactly  harmo- 
nizing with  the  radiant  spirit  of  the  countenance. 

Such  are,  so  far  as  I  remember,  not  all  the  im- 
portant works  contained  in  S.  Peter's,  but  at  least 
those  which  it  is  essential  to  study,  to  preserve  the 
memory  of  it.  My  involuntary  omissions  will  give 
pilgrims  a  better  chance  of  making  discoveries  j  my 
notes,  by  the  elimination  of  a  mass  of  secondary 
works,  will  help  people  to  find  Avith  less  trouble  those 
that  are  really  supei'ior.  I  beg  indidgence  for  my 
criticisms,  and  a  good  mark  for  my  omissions. 

Pope  Pius  VI.  completed  the  buildings  by  making 
Marchionni  erect  sacristies,  Avhich  are  of  a  purer  taste 


238  EOME. 

than  the  earlier  portions.  Towards  the  end  of  the 
eighteenth  century,  architecture,  making  a  supreme 
effort,  seized  more  closely  the  spirit  of  antiquity. 
Here  we  find  the  colossi  of  S.  Peter  and  S.  Paul 
that  Pius  II.,  a  Piccolomini  of  Sienna,  had  carved, 
not  by  IVIino  da  Fiesole,  as  is  vidgarly  repeated,  but 
by  Paolo,  Avho  copied  the  S.  Paul  after  the  fine  head 
of  Demetrius,  tyrant  of  the  Morea ;  they  stood  in 
front  of  the  Vatican  until  Pius  IX.  replaced  them. 
You  visit  these  disgraced  statues  in  a  vestibvde  rich 
with  colored  marble  ;  they  are  without  style  or  char- 
acter, but  as  the  statues  which  succeeded  them  are 
no  better,  Pius  IX.  would  have  done  well  to  have 
sent  the  new  ones  off  too,  to  the  basilica  of  S.  Paul 
which  Avas  awaiting  them. 

The  clerks  and  canons  are  lodged  in  these  vast 
buildings,  which  contain  a  small  world ;  besides  the 
common  sacristy,  which  is  octagonal  in  form,  are 
three  others  used  for  special  purposes.  You  reach 
them  by  galleries  adorned  with  antique  inscriptions 
in  the  spaces  between  the  columns.  The  capitals  of 
the  pilasters  bear  the  complicated  arms  of  Pius  VI. : 
palms  rolled  in  volutes,  a  star  for  the  eyCj  and  the 
branch  of  lily  in  the  centre.  In  the  sacristy  of  the 
canons  there  is  opposite  the  altar,  which  is  decorated 
with  a  picture  by  Fattore,  a  painting  by  Giulio  Ro- 
mano, the  Virgin  Avith  the  infant  Jesus  and  S.  John, 
which  deserves  a  special  place  among  the  works  of  a 
master  whose  too  ostentatious  art  is  not  always  thus 


THE  SACRISTIES  OF  S.  PETER'S.  239 

tempered  by  sentiment  and  charm.  In  the  chapter- 
hall  is  the  reproduction  of  the  ancient  Seat  of  the 
Apostle,  with  a  host  of  precious  objects  Mdiicli  it 
would  take  too  long  to  enumerate.  These  Italian 
sacristies  are  at  once  cabinets  of  curiosities  and  pri- 
vate apartments;  there  the  priests  dress  and  undress; 
write,  hum,  run  through  the  breviary  ;  and,  if  your 
discretion  detains  you  on  the  threshold,  bid  you  enter, 
I  could  never  succeed  in  Italy,  in  spite  of  conscien- 
tious efforts,  in  rendering  my  coming  inopportune. 
In  the  Stanza  Capitolare  you  will  be  charmed  with 
a  painting  by  Giotto,  and  still  more  so  by  some  rav- 
ishing little  frescoes  by  Melozzo  da  Forli,  seraphim 
charming  in  design,  and  with  a  sweetness  of  effect 
particularly  surprising  so  far  back  as  1471,  two-and- 
twenty  years  before  the  birth  of  Correggio.  En- 
larged in  mosaics,  these  figures,  taken  from  the  Santi 
Apostoli,  have  been  executed  on  the  sky  of  the  cupola, 
where  they  contrast  happily  with  the  surroundings. 
There  are  also  to  be  seen  here  some  small  predellas 
that  may  be  atti'ibuted  to  Giotto,  and  a  Virgin  of  the 
end  of  the  fourteenth  century,  that  is  rather  remark- 
able. 

Fully  to  appreciate  the  extravagant  immensity  of 
the  basilica  it  is  not  enough  to  saunter  there  for  long 
hours ;  you  must  wander  all  round  it,  and  contem- 
plate from  the  gardens  the  dome  and  one  of  the  apses, 
rising  majestically  above  the  branches  of  the  great 
green  oaks,  which  are  made  to  look  like  mere  shrubs ; 


240  ROME. 

you  must  pass  under  the  portico  which  leads  to  the 
sacristy  from  the  outside,  and  from  the  basement  of 
the  church  look  at  the  distant  houses  at  the  end  of 
the  piazza,  which  seem  like  German  toys ;  you  must 
in  descending  laterally  from  the  portico  count  the 
twenty  steps  of  a  staircase,  which  does  not  reach  up 
to  the  stylobate  of  the  neighboring  pilaster ;  you  must 
estimate  the  little  space  occupied  by  the  pedestal  and 
the  equestrian  figure  of  Constantino,  entirely  absorbed 
as  it  is  in  the  thickness  of  a  pillar.  But  above  all  do 
not  shrink  from  the  ascent  of  the  dome  with  which 
we  will  now  conclude. 

A  gentle  interior  slope,  formed  by  such  very  low 
steps  that  sheep  might  ascend  it,  leads  to  the  plat- 
form between  the  summit  of  the  facade  and  the  drum 
of  the  dome ;  it  is  the  first  plateau  of  this  artificial 
mountain.  Advancing  immediately  towards  the  pi- 
azza, to  throAV  a  glance  from  this  height  upon  the 
pavement,  I  leaned  against  an  upright  rock,  posted 
there  like  a  Druidical  altar ;  and  as  other  similar 
masses  disclosed  their  outlines  at  my  side,  I  recog- 
nized the  twelve  statues  of  the  apostles  which  crown 
Maderno's  facade.  Turning  round,  I  faced  a  sort  of 
plain,  ending  in  the  monstrous  tower  of  which  the 
cupola  is  the  roof.  To  the  right  and  left,  like  hills, 
the  small  octagonal  domes,  now  become  considerable, 
bound  the  valley,  which  is  the  flat  roof  of  the  nave 
and  aisles.  This  country  is  inhabited ;  there  has  been 
formed  in  it   a  small  hamlet,  with  workshops,  huts, 


S.  PETER'S,  ASCENT  OF  THE  DOME.  241 

sheds  for  domestic  beasts,  a  forge,  a  carpenter's  shop, 
wash-houses,  ovens  ;  some  httle  carts  are  stabled ;  a 
fomitain  sparkles  in  a  rivulet  which  conducts  it  to  a 
large  basin  or  small  lake  in  which  the  dome  mirrors 
itself  I  you  feel  that  there  is  up  here  an  organized 
existence.  For  several  families  in  feet,  it  is  a  na- 
tive land ;  the  workmen  of  S.  Peter,  called  San 
Pietrini,  succeed  one  another  from  father  to  son, 
and  form  a  tribe.  The  natives  of  the  terrace  have 
laws  and  customs  of  their  own.  From  this  spot, 
whence  you  discern  the  entire  height  of  the  build- 
ing, there  are  still  two  hundred  and  eighty-five  feet 
to  climb. 

Another  point  of  view  of  the  interior  of  the  church 
is  contrived  in  the  entablature  which  describes  the 
circumference  of  the  cupola.  This  border  is  more 
than  two  metres  high,  although  from  the  pavement 
you  would  take  it  for  a  simple  moulding.  From  this 
height  the  church  seems  like  the  bottom  of  an  abyss ; 
the  canopy  of  the  altar  sinks  into  earth,  the  pillars 
attenuated  at  their  base  by  a  retreating  perspec- 
tive form  a  reversed  pyramid,  and  the  faithful  are 
dots;  a  bluish  haze  increases  the  enormousness  of  the 
space.  And  as  your  eyes  ascend  the  walls  of  the 
dome,  the  frieze  discloses  in  capital  letters  seven  feet 
high  the  famous  inscription,  Tu  ES  Petrus,  which 
from  below  does  not  seem  more  than  six  inches  high. 
On  the  pendentives  I  had  remarked  a  St.  Luke  of  a 
reasonable  stature ;  seen  from  here  it  stretches  under 
16 


242  EOME. 

the  cupola  like  a  cloud ;  the  pen  with  which  he  writes 
is  seven  feet  in  length. 

At  last  the  real  ascent  begins  between  the  two 
shells  of  the  cupola,  and  this  strange  journey,  in  which 
as  you  climb  you  lean  over  curved  and  inclined  planes, 
at  last  by  a  curious  sensation  robs  you  of  all  the  effect 
of  horizontal  lines,  and  consequently  of  a  perpendic- 
ular. You  are  then  in  a  state  of  considerable  amaze- 
ment, when  you  come  suddenly  upon  two  remark- 
able sights :  in  the  inside,  from  a  circular  balustrade 
devised  in  the  lantern,  the  pavement  of  the  church 
as  if  seen  at  the  small  end  of  a  telescope  ;  outside, 
from  a  narrow  gallery  round  the  lantern,  a  view  that 
is  almost  unbounded ;  it  embraces  all  the  old  Latin 
world  from  the  Sabine  hills  to  the  sea,  and  from  the 
heights  of  Alba  to  Etruria.  Only  when  you  issue 
from  the  inner  arches  into  the  full  and  dazzling  sun 
of  this  eagle's  nest,  you  are  not  only  dazzled,  but 
almost  lifted  up  in  the  air  by  hurricanes  of  wind 
which  come  from  the  Mediterranean  to  dash  them- 
selves against  this  height.  You  have  now  only  to 
climb  to  the  bronze  ball,  which  from  below  has  the 
effect  of  a  melon,  and  which  is  capable  of  holding 
sixteen  persons.  You  reach  it  by  an  iron  ladder  ab- 
solutely perpendicular. 

The  concussion  of  the  wind  makes  this  iron  globe 
constantly  musical  5  it  is  pierced  with  loop-holes  in- 
visible from  below,  and  through  which,  seated  on  an 
iron  ledge,  you  prolong  your  gaze  far  over  the  moun- 


S.  PETER'S,  VIEW  FROM  THE  DOME.  243 

tains.  Seen  thus  from  the  bhie  tract  of  the  skies, 
the  Roman  Campagna  loses  its  russet  glow  in  a  green 
mirage ;  the  flattened  slopes  no  longer  justify  the 
many  windings  of  the  Tiber,  and  the  seven  hills  of 
Rome — which  are  in  truth  ten — are  no  longer  dis- 
tinguishable. These  perspectives  are  still  more  mag- 
ical from  the  Giro  dei  Candelabri,  where,  from  a  lower 
height,  you  measure  the  extent  of  the  Borgo  and  the 
Vatican  palaces,  which  with  their  square  buildings 
and  labyrinthine  gardens  produce  the  effect  of  a 
heavenly  Jerusalem  in  the  illuminations  of  some  old 
missal. 

The  dome,  which  makes  the  cross  sparkle  over  the 
horizon  of  Rome  higher  than  the  eagles  of  Jupiter 
ever  flew,  is  the  true  mountain  of  this  spiritual  em- 
pire, and  the  hills  make  a  circle  of  homage  around 
it.  For  the  basilica  of  S.  Peter  is  even  more  than  a 
prodigy  of  human  avlU  ;  it  is  the  sensible  translation 
of  a  thought ;  it  is  the  history  of  Christianity  sung  in 
a  poem  of  stone  and  marble,  and  attested  by  the  wit- 
ness of  proofs  on  the  spot  where  the  occurrences 
actually  took  place.  For  all  sects,  for  all  believers 
of  whatever  faith,  S.  Peter's  is  one  of  the  sacred 
enclosures  of  the  universe.  Let  the  work  be  more 
or  less  perfectly  achieved  as  to  detail,  it  will  still  re- 
main mightier  for  its  ideal  and  mystical  value  than 
for  the  accumulation  of  gold  and  marble. 

The  most  ancient  monument  of  the  Vatican  that  is 
still  standing,  is  an  obelisk  to  Avhich  the  writers  of  the 


244  ROME. 

first  century  called  the  attention  of  posterity  ;  Pliny 
tells  us  how,  to  bring  it  from  Egypt,  Caligula  sent  to 
sea  the  greatest  ship  that  ever  existed.  The  obelisk 
disembarked,  they  set  it  up  at  the  Spina  of  the  circus 
which  Caligula  had  established  in  his  gardens  on  the 
Vatican,  and  this  circus  took  the  name  of  Nero  when 
the  successor  of  Claudius  received  through  his  mother 
Agrippina  the  younger  the  inheritance  of  Caligula. 
But  before,  as  after  Nero,  the  hill  was  always  desert 
and  of  evil  name.  Under  the  republic  people  heard 
voices  there  ;  vatlcinia  were  given  there,  and  hence, 
according  to  some,  the  origin  of  the  word  Vatican. 
Spectres  and  Avild  beasts  persisted  under  the  Csesars 
in  haunting  these  retreats ;  serpents  multiplied,  and 
Pliny  tells  how  in  the  reign  of  Claudius  they  killed 
one  of  these  monsters,  Avho  had  inside  him  the  re- 
mains of  a  human  child.  We  know  from  Tacitus 
that  after  the  burning  of  Rome  Nero,  to  appease  the 
gods  and  turn  aside  from  himself  the  suspicions  of 
men,  "  subdidit  reos  et  qusesitissimis  poenis  atfecit 
quos  per  flagitia  invisos,   vulgus  Christianos  appel- 

labat Et  pereuntibus  addita  ludibria,  ut  fer- 

arum  tergis  contecti,  laniatu  canum  interirent,  aut 
crucibus  affixi,  aut  flammandi,  atque  ubi  defecisset 
dies,  in  usumnoctur  ni  luminis  urerentur.  Hortos 
suos  ei  spectaculo  Nero  obtulerat,  et  circense  ludic- 
rum  edebat,  habitu  aurigse  permixtus  plebi,  vel  cur- 
riculo  insistens." 

Among  the  ruins  of  the  Vatican,  which  was  aban- 


THE  TOMB  OF  S.  PETER.  245 

doned  at  the  end  of  Nero's  reign,  the  witness  that 
had  been  sent  from  Egypt  never  fell.  Sixtus  V. 
found  it  in  its  place,  close  to  the  present  sacristy,  in 
a  court  where  it  continued  to  mark  the  Spina  of  the 
circus  which  had  been  the  theatre  of  the  lirst  mar- 
tyrdoms. It  was  here  that  the  Christians  dug  graves 
for  their  brethren,  under  the  very  ground  on  which 
they  had  confessed  to  their  belief.  The  spot  was 
henceforth  consecrated;  when  its  abandonment  by  the 
emperors  had  left  it  desert,  the  feithful  brought  hither 
the  head  of  S.  Paul,  which  had  been  buried  near  the 
Salvian  springs  on  the  Ostian  Road ;  it  was  the  same 
with  S.  Peter,  ^^'hom  his  disciples  hid  for  some  time, 
before  burying  him  on  the  Vatican  with  the  other 
victims  of  the  first  persecution.  Evidence  shows,  so 
far  as  testimony  of  that  sort  is  evidence,  the  authen- 
ticity of  this  burial-place :  four-and-twenty  years  after 
the  execution  of  Peter,  Anacletus  marked  the  spot  by 
a  small  oratory,  of  which  a  portion  remains,  for  this 
monument  was  preserved  by  Pope  S.  Sylvester  when 
he  had  the  Vatican  catacombs  excavated,  in  order  to 
lay  the  foundation  of  the  basilica  erected  by  command 
of  Constantino  on  the  ruins  of  the  oratory  of  Ana- 
cletus. Eleven  centuries  later  they  overturned  the 
ground  still  further  to  build  the  substruction  of  a 
larger  basilica,  but  on  the  same  spot,  still  continuing 
to  respect  the  tomb  of  the  apostle,  round  Avhich  there 
still  remains  portions  of  the  pavement  of  the  Con- 
stantinian  church :  finally,   three   centuries  ago   the 


246  ROME. 

grave  was   opened,  and  the  presence  of  the  bones 
estabUshed. 

This  is  the  basihca  of  S.  Peter,  and  this  is  what 
that  obelisk  of  Cahgiila  has  watched  going  on  at  its 
base,  and  over  a  tomb  once  dug  in  a  garden,  it  will 
soon  be  two  thousand  years  ago,  by  timid  and  dis- 
quieted shadoAvs. 

When  a  long  residence  at  Rome  has  familiarized 
you  with  the  basilica  of  St.  Peter,  the  building  ac- 
quires an  extreme  importance  in  your  mind  ;  from 
the  banks  of  the  Tiber,  from  the  green  solitudes  of 
the  Villa  Pamphili,  from  the  distant  slopes  of  the 
Sabine  country,  the  eye  seeks  that  peak  Avhich  gives 
their  character  to  the  horizons  of  the  district.  Amid 
the  confused  outlines  of  the  city  and  the  Campagna, 
the  cupola  is  a  culminating  point  which  rallies  all 
eyes  ;  it  is  the  Mont  Blanc  of  the  pontifical  states. 

Under  the  naves  where  one  loves  to  wander  and 
think,  all  concurs,  as  soon  as  you  rise  above  the 
minutiae  of  analysis,  to  suggest  the  idea  of  a  truly 
universal  conception,  uniting  all  peoples  in  a  common 
fraternity.  Certain  practices  contribute  to  this  im- 
pression :  beneath  the  shadow  of  the  cross,  here  as  at 
S.  John  Lateran,  priests  of  ten  nations,  almost  in 
permanence,  hear  penitents  submissive  to  the  same 
dogma,  and  coming  to  profess  it  in  all  tongues ;  the 
various  languages  are  marked  by  a  sign  on  the  front 
of  each  chapel.  Before  the  door  of  each  confessional 
is  fixed  a  long  pole  like  a  fishing-rod,  and  often,  as  a 


ORIGIN  OF  AN  ANCIENT  CUSTOM.  247 

priest  listens  to  his  penitent,  you  see  a  believer  ap- 
proach with  clasped  hands  and  sink  on  his  knees 
three  or  four  paces  off ;  then  without  interrupting  his 
exhortations,  the  priest  raises  the  curtain,  stretches 
out  his  arm,  and  places  the  end  of  the  rod  on  the  head 
of  this  passing  penitent. 

The  custom  of  exalting  on  a  sella  gestatoria  the 
fathers  of  the  Roman  country,  the  sovereign  pontiffs, 
the  patricians,  and  the  emperors,  had  its  origin  under 
the  Republic,  in  the  time  when  Sulla  was  dictator : 
Avas  not  the  first  seat  of  the  Popes,  lent  to  S.  Peter 
by  Pudens,  a  curule  chair  !  On  a  Pontifex  maximus, 
a  title  perpetuated  to  our  own  day,  in  the  year  511 
of  Rome,  was  conferred  for  the  first  time  the  privilege 
of  being  carried  in  a  chair  to  the  senate  ;  at  the  time 
of  a  conflagration  in  the  temple  of  Vesta,  Csecilius 
had  at  the  peril  of  his  life  saved  the  sacred  objects. 
Since  then  the  dignitaries  of  state  have  claimed  a 
privilege  first  enjoyed  by  a  supreme  pontiff,  and  which 
only  the  sovereign  pontiff  has  retained.  On  either 
side  of  the  "  sella  "  huge  fans  of  feathers  are  carried, 
and  the  rich  and  picturesque  uniforms  of  the  Guardia 
Nobilo  and  the  Pope's  Swiss  Guard  add  much  to  the 
effect  of  the  show,  when  the  Pope  is  carried  in  pro- 
cession. 

Witnessing  the  celebration  of  some  great  festival 
in  a  Roman  basilica,  one  wonders  whether  the  col- 
umns of  the  nave,  refugees  from  pagan  temples,  have 
not   seen  something  analogous  to  the  display  of  the 


248  EOME. 

Catholic  ceremonial.  Take  for  instance  the  Luper- 
calia,  the  feast  of  the  shepherd  and  tillers  of  the  soil, 
older  than  Rome,  celebrated  since  its  foundation  on 
the  Palatine  by  the  Quinctian  clan  in  honor  of  Ceres 
or  Famius,  and  of  Pan,  the  destroyer  of  wolves.  This 
is  how  in  our  own  day  it  was  celebrated  at  S.  Peter's 
on  Candlemas  Day. 

The  cardinals  are  attired  in  violet  chasubles,  richly 
embroidered  in  gold,  and  mitres  like  the  bishops,  who 
wear  copes  to  match.  When  the  holy  father  is  in- 
stalled on  the  pontifical  throne,  the  ceremony  com- 
mences with  the  benediction  of  a  multitude  of  torches; 
at  the  Introit,  the  priests  and  the  deacons  of  the  choir 
fall  on  their  knees  in  turn  before  the  Pope,  who  sup- 
ports in  his  two  hands  a  taper  placed  horizontally,  to 
which  they  have  fastened  crosses  and  Madonnas  at 
each  of  the  ends.  It  is  offered  to  the  prelate  to  kiss, 
after  which,  as  the  postulant  kneels  before  him,  the 
Pope  raising  his  arms  places  the  taper  above  his 
head ;  then  one  of  the  officials  takes  it  and  hands  it 
to  the  recipient.  The  cardinals  and  bishops,  the 
chamberlain,  the  heads  of  orders,  the  senators,  the 
prince  assistant,  all  come  for  a  taper  ;  after  them  de- 
file in  the  train  of  the  mace-bearers,  the  conserva- 
tors, ambassadors,  and  generals ;  each  in  turn  goes 
through  the  same  ceremonial.  During  the  formali- 
ties of  this  homage  to  the  pontifical  throne,  tapers  are 
distributed  to  personages  of  lower  rank ;  the  cross- 
bearers  then  resume  their  march,  and  a  new  proces- 


RELIGIOUS  CEREMONIES.  249 

sion  of  torches,  starting  from  the  right  of  the  balclac- 
chino,  completes  the  circle  of  the  church,  returning 
by  the  left.  Cardinals,  mitred  bishops,  to  the  num- 
ber of  some  fifty,  in  their  chasubles  and  copes  all 
glittering  with  gold,  surrounding  the  curule  chair  of 
the  sovereign,  this  time  wearing  a  mitre  of  gold ; 
foreign  princes,  ambassadors,  officers,  men-at-arms  in 
full  uniform, — all  combine  to  form  a  most  striking 
spectacle. 

On  the  return  of  the  procession,  all  the  ecclesiasti- 
cal ornaments,  the  chair  of  the  holy  father,  and  the 
back  of  the  papal  dais,  suddenly  change  color  ;  Avhite 
has  replaced  scarlet.  Returning  to  the  choir  the 
holy  father  is  robed  afresh  in  a  long  silver  cope,  while 
the  cardinals,  quitting  the  chasuble,  resume  the  long 
purple  cloak  wdth  ermine  hood ;  the  mitre  is  replaced 
by  a  biretta  which  they  hold  folded  up,  and  Avhich 
looks  like  a  fan.  This  public  change  of  toilettes  pro- 
duces a  half-comic  kind  of  animation.  The  high 
mass  of  Candlemas  is  celebrated  by  a  cardinal  wear- 
ing a  mitre  of  gold  on  which  in  relief  stand  out  ears 
of  corn  and  flowers  ;  he  is  assisted  by  four  deacons 
and  as  many  sub-deacons.  The  Pope  gives  the  bene- 
diction, after  intoning  the  accustomed  Te  Deuni  in 
commemoration  of  the  earthquake  of  1703.  At  the 
CotiJifeor,the  Credo,  and  the  Doniine  non  sum  dlgnits, 
the  cardinals  leaving  their  seats  descend  rapidly  in  a 
circle  to  the  middle  of  the  choir,  where,  half  turning, 
as  if  to  call  one  another  mutually  to  witness,  they  re- 


250  EOME. 

cite  with  loud  voice  the  sacramental  prayers ;  the 
Pope  does  the  same  with  his  assistants;  and  the  sound 
of  the  words  crossing  one  another  in  this  way  is  very 
singular. 

Raised  on  several  steps,  the  high  altar  at  S.  Peter's 
has  an  inevitable  bareness,  because  in  the  patriarchal 
basilicas  they  celebrate  so  as  to  face  the  faithful  as- 
sembled in  the  nave.  Tiaras  and  precious  mitres 
taken  from  the  treasury  are  placed  in  dishes  at  the 
angles  of  the  altar — a  most  curious  custom. 

On  these  occasions  a  great  variety  of  sacerdotal  as 
well  as  military  costume  was  to  be  seen.  At  those 
times  when  the  "Grand  Relics"  were  to  be  displayed, 
the  whole  show  was  grouped  below  and  in  front  of  the 
statue  of  S.  Veronica,  under  the  cupola. 


MICHAEL  ANGELO'S  MOSES.  251 


CHAPTER    XII. 

One  would  be  more  Ccager  to  enter  the  little  church 
of  San  Pietro  in  Vincoli  but  for  the  temptation  to 
seat  one's  self  on  the  steps  outside,  facing  a  vista 
contrived  at  the  bottom  of  a  rather  steep  space,  half- 
shut  in  by  old  buildings  at  the  foot  of  which  grass 
springs  up  in  the  pavement.  This  piazetta  is  a  sort 
of  embankment  over  an  uneven  street,  and  above  it 
rise  the  outlines  of  the  Capitol,  some  houses  perched 
on  the  Tarpeian  Rock,  and  the  distant  monastic 
grounds  of  the  Janiculum.  In  the  foreground  are 
grouped  the  irregular  roofs  and  square  clock-tower 
of  a  monastery,  beyond  which  there  rises  a  fine  palm- 
tree  5  here  and  there  certain  enclosures  are  marked 
with  orange-trees,  cypresses,  and  laurels ;  the  pict- 
ure is  bounded  to  the  right  by  the  patched  and  an- 
cient walls  of  the  palace  of  Lucrezia  Borgia. 

Cross  the  threshold  of  the  church  and  go  up  the 
nave  :  before  you  is  the  Moses  of  Michael  Angelo. 

The  monument,  which  occupies  the  right  side  of  a 
well-lighted  choir,  is  placed  well  in  front  of  a  marble 
recess ;  seated  before  you  on  the  same  plane  of  the 
horizon,  the  figure  is  colossal  and  animated  by  a 
superhuman  power  of  execution  :  thus,  as  we  are  un- 
accustomed to  see  ourselves  face  to  face  and  so  close 


252  ROME. 

to  giants,  the  first  impression  is  one  of  stupor.  To 
the  amazing  grandeur  of  the  style,  which  charac- 
terizes a  conception  as  singular  as  it  is  naturally 
worked  out,  is  added  a  most  wonderful  finish ;  no 
lapidary  ever  caressed  with  such  affection  the  model 
of  a  cameo.  The  Moses  is  a  miniature  eleven  feet 
high ;  the  polish  of  the  marble  makes  it  shine  like 
an  onyx.  Everybody  knows  the  work,  or  thinks  he 
knows  it ;  in  truth  the  soul  of  the  creation  resides 
nowhere  but  in  the  original.  There  the  brow  of  the 
Moses  is  Olympian  and  its  eyes  of  formidable  poAver, 
the  straight  nose  surmounts  dense  moustaches  and  a 
prominent  mouth,  so  thick,  so  brutal,  that  the  face 
becomes  that  of  a  person  who  is  not  merely  ugly  but 
repulsive  from  the  point  of  view  of  ordinary  beauty. 
Hence  the  disappointment  of  people  who  are  not 
sufficiently  gifted  to  be  seized  at  once  by  the  sov- 
ereign grace,  which  here  unites  itself  to  sovereign 
vigor ;  the  attitude  at  once  so  singular  and  so  unre- 
strained ;  the  half-antique  and  half-oriental  arrange- 
ment ;  the  sculptural  beauty  of  the  arm  and  the 
hand,  which,  resting  on  the  book  of  the  Law,  lifts  the 
tresses  of  the  beard ;  the  ample  beard  itself  distrib- 
uted in  noble  masses ;  the  model  of  the  legs,  bent 
back  in  their  Asiatic  gear  by  a  movement  which 
fixes  and  accentuates  the  person  ;  the  drapery  whose 
ample  folds  enframe  a  knee  that,  if  it  had  been  found 
by  itself  in  the  course  of  some  excavation,  would 
betray  one  of  the  greatest  masters  of  the  world. 


S.  PIETRO  IN  VINCOLI.  253 

The  building  celebrated  for  the  possession  of  this 
masterpiece  is  not  without  interest.  An  execrable 
woman  founded  the  church  of  S.  Peter  in  Vinculis,  to 
be  the  reliquary  of  the  chains  bj  which  the  first 
apostle  had  been  bound. 

It  was,  I  suppose,  Athenais-Eudoxia,  wife  of  Theo- 
dosius  II.,  who,  having  withdrawn  into  the  Holy 
Land,  whither  she  Avent  to  seek  a  refuge  and  a  tomb, 
sent  her  daughter  Eudoxia  the  chains  which  S.  Peter 
had  borne  at  Jerusalem. 

Here  is  buried  the  jeweller,  sculptor,  bronze- 
worker,  and  painter,  Antonio  PoUajuolo  {PuUarius), 
by  the  side  of  his  brother  Peter,  who  initiated  him 
into  the  mystery  of  oil  colors,  recently  revealed  to 
his  master  Andrea  del  Castagno  by  Domenico  Vene- 
ziano,  Avhom  Andrea  assassinated,  that  he  might  re- 
main the  solitary  possessor  of  the  secret.  The  in- 
scription of  Antonio,  which  recalls  the  tombs  of 
Sixtus  IV.  and  Innocent  VIII.,  tells  how  he  wished 
to  repose. by  the  side  of  his  brother.  The  two  died 
within  a  few  months  of  one  another  in  1498 ;  and 
this  epitaph  shows  contrary  to  all  the  accounts  that 
Peter  preceded  Antonio.  The  latter  was  seventy- 
two  years  old.  In  front  of  the  monument,  in  small 
oval  niches,  are  placed  the  busts  of  the  two  brothers, 
still  young  and  endowed  with  a  happy  simplicity  of 
expression.  Above  is  a  fresco  of  the  fifteenth  cen- 
tury, representing  the  Plague  of  Rome,  after  the 
legend  of  S.  Sebastian  ;  you  see  the  angel  of  dark- 


254  '  KOME. 

ness  knocking  with  a  spear  at  the  doors  of  houses, 
but  at  the  intercession  of  a  cardinal  a  cherub  arrests 
the  spirit  of  evih 

We  now  return  to  Moses.  The  structure  of  which 
it  occupies  the  centre  was  meant  to  form  one  of  the 
sides  of  the  four-fronted  tomb  Avhich  Julius  II.  pro- 
posed to  raise  for  himself  in  the  middle  of  the  nave 
of  S.  Peter's  :  the  scattered  materials  of  this  vast 
design  contribute  to  the  adornment  of  the  Palazzo 
Vecchio  at  Florence,  of  San  Lorenzo,  and  even  of 
the  Louvre.  Paul  III.  reduced  the  work  to  a  fourth, 
and  sent  this  fragment  to  San  Pietro  in  Vincoli. 
Lying  uneasily  over  the  empty  tomb,  the  bust  almost 
upright,  Pope  Julius  sleeps  leaning  on  his  elbow 
above  the  exiled  Moses.  The  plan  of  the  mausoleum 
was  ambitious  enough,  but  heavy  and  inelegant :  the 
Virgin  and  the  four  allegorical  figures  that  seem  to 
keep  guard  over  Moses,  are  poor  and  soulless  by  the 
side  of  the  masterpiece ;  two  of  them  are  the  work 
of  Raphael  of  Montelupo  ;  those  emblematic  of  active 
and  contemplative  life  of  Michael  Angelo  himself,  and 
the  Madonna  of  Scherano  da  Settignano. 

As  you  leave  this  church  and  its  little-visited 
cloister,  in  the  middle  of  which  is  a  well  with  a  re- 
markable brim,  you  are  pleased  to  see  the  little  piazza 
again,  before  plunging  into  the  bhack  tunnel,  bounded 
by  Etruscan  substructions,  which  brings  }  ou  into  the 
still  plebeian  quarter  of  the  Suburra,  whither  flocked 
in  old  days  the  companions  of  the  seven  guilds  already 


THE  PORTA  APPIA.  255 

constituted  under  the  Tarquins,  namely,  the  flute- 
players,  the  jewellers,  the  carpenters,  the  cordwainers, 
the  copper-workers,  the  potters,  and  the  dyers.  As 
these  moved  nearer  to  the  Forum,  their  place  was 
taken  by  the  barbers,  and  the  makers  of  scourges  for 
the  castigation  of  slaves — a  flourishing  branch  of 
trade  ;  finally  to  the  Phrynes,  Avho  gave  in  their  ac- 
counts to  their  masters,  the  patricians. 

From  S.  Pietro  in  A  incoli  I  wandered  to  the  Porta 
Appia,  rebuilt  by  Narses,  and  the  triumphal  arch  de- 
creed by  the  senate  to  Drusus  the  ftither  of  Claudius, 
and  Germanicus,  after  his  victories  over  the  Germans 
and  the  Alpine  tribes.  This  son  of  Livia,  adopted 
by  Augustus,  Avas  the  first  Roman  leader  to  sail  the 
North  Sea.  His  arch  beyond  which  the  Appian  Way 
retreats  in  perspective,  is  topped  by  an  appfendage 
bristling  Avith  brambles — an  addition  of  unhappy  ef- 
fect due  to  Caracalla,  Avho  made  it  serve  as  a  support 
for  the  aqueduct  of  his  baths. 

Outside  of  the  Aurelian  AAalls,  other  pictures  come 
to  variegate  this  mosaic  of  memories  :  amid  such  con- 
flicting reminiscences,  how  difiicult  it  is  to  preser\'e 
any  chronological  order  !  Here  is  S.  Sebastian's,  a 
basilica  of  Constantinian  origin,  its  naA'e  disfigured 
by  Cardinal  Borghese ;  then  a  chapel  into  Avhich  it 
is  useless  to  enter,  but  that  one  cannot  hear  named 
AA'ithout  Avondering  as  to  its  origin.  It  has  for  title — 
Domine  quo  vadis  f  S.  Ambrose  tells  Iioav,  at  the 
beginning  of  the   persecution  of  Nero,  S.  Peter  fled 


256  ROME. 

from  Rome  at  the  prayer  of  his  disciples,  who  con- 
jured him  to  preserve  a  life  so  precious  for  the  grow- 
ing church.  He  went  forth  by  the  Porta  Capena. 
Having  passed  the  walls,  Simon  Peter  at  sunrise  was 
measuring  Avith  his  steps  the  shadows  of  the  tombs 
by  which  the  Appian  Way  is  bordered,  when,  on  the 
broad  pavement,  which  still  remains  in  places,  he  saw 
approaching,  Avith  face  set  towards  the  city,  his  an- 
cient master,  Jesus  Christ.  "  Lord,  where  goest 
thou  ?"  cried  the  amazed  apostle : — Domine  quo 
vadis  f 

And  Jesus  answered  him,  "  I  go  to  Rome,  to  be 
crucified  a  second  time." 

The  fugitive  understood,  and  bowed  his  head. 
Peter  returned  to  Rome,  where  martyrdom  awaited 
him,  and  on  his  tomb  the  church  Avas  founded.  The 
teaching  of  the  legend  is  plain.  To  pontiffs  tempted 
at  the  first  threat  to  abandon  the  tomb  of  the  apostles, 
the  Appian  Way  would  offer  good  counsel,  and  the 
echo  of  this  foundation  Avould  awake,  crying  to  them, 
Domine  quo  vadis  f 

As  far  as  S.  Sebastian  the  aspect  of  this  never- 
ending  suburb  is  that  of  a  poor  and  half-abandoned 
faubourg.  You  folIoAV  the  road  Avhich  the  censor 
Appius  Claudius,  after  digging  the  first  aqueduct  to 
conduct  the  Avaters  of  Prseneste  to  Rome,  opened  and 
paved  three  hundred  and  ten  years  before  our  era. 
It  has  kept  the  name  of  its  founder,  though  Csesar 
prolonged    it   far  beyond   the    country  of  the  Volsci, 


Tomb  of  Caecilia  Metella 


.-^  >j- 


A     - .  ** 


THE  TOMB  OF  CECILIA  METELLA.  257 

while  Augustus,  that  is  to  say  Agrippa,  who  had  the 
honor  of  finishing  it,  carried  it  as  far  as  Cumse.  The 
road  is  broad  and  very  straight,  Avith  traces  of  paths 
and  open  spaces  in  Visigothic  pavement ;  the  grass 
is  green  on  the  way,  but  the  direction  is  definitely 
marked,  with  a  melancholy  grandeur,  by  two  avenues 
of  ruined  mausoleums  of  every  shape  and  size,  Avhich, 
from  the  gate  of  S.  Sebastian  to  the  foot  of  Albano, 
are  numbered  by  thousands.  In  the  middle  ages, 
some  feudal  bandits  having  transformed  several  of 
these  tombs  into  fortresses  wdiere  travellers  Avere  de- 
tained for  ransoms,  the  latter  deserted  an  approach 
thus  bristling  with  dangers  and  gradually  wore  to  the 
left  the  present  road  to  Albano,  until  at  last  the  very 
track  of  the  Appian  Way  came  to  be  effaced  by 
grass  and  brushwood.  We  owe  its  restoration  to 
Pius  IX.,  who  had  it  cleared,  and  the  tombs  re- 
paired for  a  space  of  five  or  six  miles,  thus  giving 
back  to  the  civilized  Avorld  the  most  splendid  of  his- 
torical promenades,  where  as  many  as  thirty  thousand 
mausoleums  are  to  be  counted. 

At  the  top  of  an  ascent  the  outline  of  the  mole  of 
Csecilia  Metella  is  seen.  This  turriform  maiisoleum 
is  about  seventy  feet  in  diameter,  and  it  must  be  a 
third  more  in  height ;  the  Avails,  Avhich  are  thirty- 
five  feet  in  thickness,  are  thought  to  have  contained 
until  the  reign  of  Paul  V.  the  fine  sarcophagus  that 
is  to-day  to  be  seen  in  the  court  of  the  Farnese  Pal- 
ace.    Csecilia,  daughter  of  Metellus  Creticus  and  Avife 

17 


258  ROME. 

of  the  triumvir  Crassus,  lived  in  the  last  period  of  the 
Republic ;  her  monument,  faced  with  travertine,  is 
crowned  Avith  a  frieze  and  a  cornice  of  marble,  orna- 
mented with  festoons  ;  the  inscription,  Avhich  was  sur- 
mounted by  a  bas-relief  of  Avhich  only  some  vestiges 
are  left,  faces  the  road.  This  tower  is  the  oldest 
Roman  building  of  an  assured  date,  where  the  use  of 
marble  is  shown. 

In  the  thirteenth  century  the  tower  of  Csecilia  was 
decorated  with  a  keep  and  dovetailed  battlements, 
by  the  Caetani,  who  had  imprisoned  in  their  castrum 
both  sides  of  the  Appian  Way,  by  throwing  an  arch 
over  it,  under  which  was  a  postern  gate.  No  one 
could  pass  without  paying  ransom  ;  that  was  what 
the  Ghibellines  called  making  Avar  on  the  despotism 
of  the  popes.  The  ruins  of  the  fortress  still  remain, 
portions  of  the  Avail,  and  the  chapel,  Avith  the  escut- 
cheon of  the  Caetani  in  marble.  Near  the  sixth 
milestone  travellers  used  to  fall  into  the  clutches  of 
another  lord  of  the  higliAvay,  the  Orsini  having  en- 
trenched themselves  in  the  tomb  of  Messalinus  Cotta, 
a  quadrangular  tumulus  one  hundred  and  tAventy  feet 
long.  It  is  to  Valerius  CorA'us  the  dictator  that  they 
attribute  the  loAver  portion  of  a  monument  that  was 
completed  and  decorated  under  the  Csesars.  The 
toAver,  one  of  the  largest  in  existence,  is  encumbered 
on  one  side  nearly  up  to  the  summit  Avith  a  mass  of 
ruins  of  marble  and  stone  from  Albano ;  Corinthian 
capitals,    scattered   portions  of  arcliAA'ays,  pieces   of 


THE  APPIAN  WAY.  259 

cornice,  that  crowned  a  decoration  in  which  pilasters 
separated  candehibra  and  scenic  masks.  You  scale 
the  edifice  over  those  avalanches  of  carved  stone. 

Beyond  the  sixth  milestone,  although  the  works 
conducted  since  1850  by  Canina  extend  much  fur- 
ther, the  monvmients  are  less  numerous  and  of  in- 
ferior importance.  Returning,  on  the  right  of  the 
Via  Appia  are  a  mass  of  ruins  that  the  Romans  of 
late  times  called  Roma  Vecchia.  These  are  the  re- 
mains of  the  villa  of  the  Quintilii,  two  brothers  Avho 
became  so  rich  that  Domitian,  or  as  some  say,  Com- 
modus,  had  them  put  to  death  that  he  might  possess 
their  domains.  Prince  Torlonia,  another  financier, 
has  excavated  these  ruins,  and  extracted  thence 
statues,  bas-reliefs,  columns,  and  entablatures  of  mai'- 
ble  of  high  value.  An  aqueduct  rising  from  the  val- 
ley conveyed  to  the  Quintilii  the  waters  of  Claudius 
and  Agrippa  in  leaden  conduits  which  still  exist,  and 
on  wdiich  are  stamped  the  names  of  the  opulent  pro- 
consids.  After  a  nympheum  on  the  side  of  the  road 
you  recognize  the  thermae,  the  site  of  the  theatre  and 
the  portico,  and  even  the  perspectives  of  the  gardens; 
these  nabobs  chose  for  their  site  one  of  the  finest 
points  of  view  in  the  neighborhood. 

A  pathway  leads  down  to  a  fountain  where  ignor- 
ance made  a  niche  for  the  nymph  Egeria  in  a  grotto 
at  the  foot  of  a  grove  of  sibylline  aspect.  According 
to  some  antiquaries,  the  pretended  nympheum  of 
Egeria  made  part  of  a  villa  of  Herodes-Atticus,  the 


260  EOME. 

Greek  rhetorician  who  had  Marcus  Aurelius  and 
Verus  for  disciples,  and  who,  when  consul  in  143  of 
our  era,  caused  superb  edifices  to  be  erected,  among 
which  was  a  theatre  and  a  stadium  of  white  marble. 
Near  this  spot  there  is  a  temple  of  Bacchus,  dedicated 
in  the  ninth  century  to  S.  Urban.  The  aisle  is 
covered  with  frescoes  representing  incidents  from  the 
life  of  Jesus  Christ,  passages  from  the  legend  of  S. 
Csecilia  and  S.  Urban,  with  the  name  of  one  Bonizzo, 
a  monk  (possibly  the  artist),  and  the  date  M.XI.  My 
walk  having  made  me  thirsty,  I  wished  for  a  drink, 
and  as  there  was  nothing  save  the  water  of  the  neigh- 
boring nympheum,  it  was  brought  to  us  by  a  tall 
bronzed  maiden,  who  might  have  served  for  a  model 
of  Isis  in  the  time  of  Hadrian. 

The  temple  of  Romulus  is  close  to  the  circus  which 
bears  his  father's  name.  They  made  some  noise  in 
1825  about  the  discovery  of  these  curious  ruins,  but 
what  was  really  found  were  the  inscriptions  which 
enable  archaeologists  to  settle  its  date.  This  circus 
of  Maxentius,  where  vast  populations  used  to  throng, 
is  now  only  the  haunt  of  birds  and  adders. 


THE  VILLA  MADAMA.  261 


CHAPTER    XIII. 

ImjMEDIATELY  after  exploring  the  funereal  erections 
on  the  Appian  Way,  and  Avhile  the  impression  is  still 
freshj  it  is  a  good  plan  to  visit  the  decorative  paint- 
ings of  the  school  of  Sanzio,  either  in  the  Vatican 
galleries,  or  at  the  Villa  Madama  where  they  were 
executed  for  Giulio  de'  Medici  by  the  pleiad  of  Ra- 
phael. The  latter  is  one  of  the  most  interesting  ex- 
cursions in  the  environs,  and  will  take  us  out  of  Rome 
in  an  entirely  opposite  direction  ;  by  the  Porta  del 
Popolo  that  is,  or  else  the  Porta  Angelica. 

At  the  time  when  Cardinal  Giulio,  Avho  became 
Pope  mider  the  name  of  Clement  VII.,  leagued  him- 
self with  Charles  V.  against  Florence,  to  seal  that 
honorable  pact,  he  married  Alessandro  de'  Medici  to 
a  natural  daughter  of  the  Emperor,  and  presented 
her  with  the  villa,  which  still  belonged  to  her  when, 
having  become  a  widow,  she  married  Ottavio  Far- 
nese,  and  in  1586  ended  her  chequered  life  at  Rome. 
The  title  of  Madame  Avas  preserved  by  this  daughter 
of  the  Emperor  ;  hence  the  designation  of  a  residence 
that  recalls  unhappy  times  and  sinister  figures.  This 
rusted  gem,  that  one  would  suppose  to  be  without  an 
owner,  now  belongs  to  the  last  King  of  Naples. 


262  EOME. 

To  gain  the  Monte  Mario,  on  the  slope  of  which 
the  Villa  Maclama  is  situated,  we  went  towards  the 
Ponte  Molle,  that  Milvian  bridge  of  which  Livy  speaks 
in  his  account  of  the  second  Punic  war,  which  leads 
to  the  Flaminian  Way.  Our  first  pause  after  leaving 
the  Porta  del  Popolo  was  in  front  of  the  Villa  of  JuUus 
III.,  a  casino  built  by  Vignola,  who  set  in  an  archi- 
tectural medallion  a  bubbling  foimtain,  where  the 
peasants  refresh  their  beasts  before  entering  the 
city. 

You  have  to  knock  long  before  the  rustic  guar- 
dians of  the  Villa  Madama,  dispersed  in  the  fields, 
are  warned  of  your  presence  by  the  barking  of  their 
dogs.  When  the  gate  is  at  last  opened  Ave  enter  a  high 
vaulted  apartment,  where  the  plaster  is  dropping 
from  the  walls  from  damp,  while  brambles  have 
thrust  their  Avay  through  the  cracks.  Vegetables, 
farm  tools,  supplies  of  fodder,  as  well  as  a  few  house- 
hold utensils,  lie  heaped  about  on  the  floor,  dimly  seen 
in  the  dull  light.  For  all  that,  this  damp  and  reeking 
cavern,  with  its  bricked-up  windows,  is  a  splendid 
state-chamber. 

In  the  darkness,  a  door,  the  bottom  of  which  was 
broken  into  a  fringe  like  a  beggar's  skirts,  suddenly 
opened  and  we  came  out  with  dazzled  eyes  in  the  full 
light  of  day,  onto  a  spacious  Loggia  in  three  divisions, 
painted  and  carved  like  the  porch  of  a  palace  of 
fairies,  and  whose  arches,  grouped  in  deep  shadows 
on   the  pavement,  threw  a  pure  outHne  against  the 


THE  VILLA  MADAMA.  263 

ethereal  depth  of  the  bkie  sky.  This  masterpiece  of 
ornamentation  was  designed  by  Giovanni  da  Udine 
and  Giiilio  Romano  ;  we  should  be  tempted  to  assign 
it  to  the  artists  of  the  iirst  century  who  executed  the 
chambers  lately  discovered  on  the  Latin  Way,  Avith 
such  success  did  Raphael  and  his  group,  impregnated 
as  they  were  with  the  ancient  arts,  proceed  from  the 
known  to  the  unknown. 

These  three  chambers  appeared  to  us,  partly  no 
doubt  by  reason  of  their  admirable  dimensions,  supe- 
rior to  the  Loggie  of  the  Vatican,  exception  being 
made,  I  need  hardly  say,  of  the  illustrations  of  the 
Bible  which  Raphael  composed  for  the  ceilings.  At 
the  Villa  Madama  the  great  subjects  are  less  serious; 
the  three  cupolas  are  decorated  with  loves  sporting 
over  our  heads  ;  some  dance  in  a  ring,  others  clamber 
up  a  high  mast,  others  bestride  the  silvery  backs  of 
swans.  The  frieze  represents  a  cavalcade  of  tiny 
cupids  on  hippogriifs  and  dolphins,  executed  with 
most  striking  freedom.  Alarmed  by  our  presence, 
bats  with  noiseless  flight  threw  their  shadows  across 
this  radiant  vision,  Avhile  under  our  feet  and  between 
our  legs  geese  and  chickens  fluttered  about  with 
many  cries. 

Returning  through  the  Borgo  and  the  Porta  An- 
gelica the  way  is  so  sliort,  that  the  day  was  not  far 
advanced  when,  after  skirting  the  colonnade  of  Ber- 
nini, we  passed  S.  Peter  and  S.  Paul,  mounting 
guard  on  the  bridge  of  S.  Angelo.      At  the  end  of 


2G4  EOME. 

the  Via  de'  Coronari,  we  chose  for  our  halting-place 
S.  Agostino. 

The  pilgrims  of  the  north  come  to  pay  homage  in 
this  temple  to  the  body  of  S.  Monica,  which,  having 
been  conveyed  from  the  estuary  of  the  Tiber  in  1430, 
was  taken  from  its  Ugnea  area  by  order  of  Calixtus 
III.,  and  placed  in  a  round  vessel  of  antique  green 
with  Florentine  supports,  its  sides  marked  with  un- 
dulating flutings.  Here  they  also  come  to  kneel  be- 
fore a  crucifix,  at  the  foot  of  which  S.  Philip  Neri 
passed  hours  of  ecstasy. 

What  the  superstitious  race  of  the  south,  however, 
seeks  at  S.  Agostino's  is  a  Madonna  in  such  high 
credit  in  these  parts,  as  to  have  become  extremely 
rich  in  consequence.  The  good  people  find  in  a  mo- 
ment the  person  they  have  come  to  seek ;  the  statue 
receives  them  at  the  door,  and  they  venture  no  fur- 
ther. J.  Tatti,  detto  il  Sansovino,  carved  this  Virgin- 
Mother  out  of  an  immense  block  of  marble ;  "  a 
respectable  work  for  the  period,"  say  the  Italian 
guide-books  absurdly :  for  the  period  happens  to  be 
that  of  Julius  II.  and  Leo  X.  The  Madonna  wears 
on  her  head  a  heavy  diadem,  ending  in  a  nimbus  of 
stars  of  precious  stones ;  the  child  is  buried  beneath 
armfids  of  jewels  ;  his  mother  wears  ear-rings  ;  bril- 
liants sparkle  like  live  fire  in .  her  hair,  plaited  like 
the  tresses  of  the  Asiatic  queens  who  allured  the  con- 
querors of  the  world.  To  preserve  the  foot  of  the 
Madonna  from  the  devouring  caresses  of  a  piety  that 


S.  AGOSTINO.  265 

wears  out  marble,  it  was  necessary  to  protect  it  with 
a  golden  buskin,  incessantly  warmed  by  ardent  lips. 
If  I  had  not  been  assured  that  this  image  cures  dis- 
eases of  children  and  makes  Avomen  fruitful,  I  should 
never  have  guessed  why,  among  so  many  chaster 
Madonnas,  that  of  S.  Agostino  had  succeeded  in  real- 
izing such  an  enormous  fortune. 

While  superstition  heaps  up  treasures  at  the  feet 
of  the  statue,  this  church  possesses  attractions  of  a 
very  different  sort.  Before  the  wide  stairs  which 
serve  for  base  to  the  facade,  architects  note  the  ele- 
gance with  Avhich,  under  Sixtus  IV.,  a  great  master 
like  Baccio  Pintelli  endowed  a  style  reduced  to  live 
abstinently.  The  classic  front  of  travertine  is  simple 
and  light ;  the  builders  aimed  at  that  refinement 
Avhich  is  the  eulogy  of  Cardinal  d'Estouteville,  ambas- 
sador of  Lewis  XI.  at  Rome,  the  prelate  who  built 
S.  Agostino. 

But  what  all  the  world  goes  there  to  see  is  that  ab- 
juration of  his  own  principles  and  sentiment  which 
Raphael  expressed  in  the  famous  fresco  of  the  Prophet 
Isaiah ;  an  inexplicable  production,  unless  it  was 
meant  to  prove  that  that  style,  Avhich  consists  in 
twisting  the  body  and  loading  it  with  sculptural 
draperies,  only  to  produce  the  travesty  of  a  prophet, 
is  not  diflicidt  to  accpiire.  Let  us  hope  that  such  was 
the  intention  of  the  painter-poet  son  of  Giovanni 
Santi,  whose  patronymic  Pietro  Bembo  insisted  upon 
modifying  into  Sanzio,  for  mere  love  of  euphony,  so 


266  ROME. 

delicate  was  the  ear  of  the  Ciceronian  prelate,  author 
of  Gli  Asolani,  who  was  so  hostile  to  bad  Latin  that 
he  never  read  his  breviary,  and  described  the  Epis- 
tles of  St.  Paul  as  Epistolacce. 

If  Raphael  meant  to  strive  with  Buonarotti  on  his 
own  ground,  he  was  venturing  into  perilous  games, 
for  the  figure  has  neither  the  nobleness  nor  the  bib- 
lical majesty  of  those  of  his  rival,  and  his  glory  will 
never  be  rid  of  the  slur  of  a  semi-abdication  before 
Michael  Angelo. 

To  estimate  the  pretensions  of  Raphael,  in  the 
presence  of  his  terrible  rival,  we  have  only  to  go  as 
far  as  the  church  of  Santa  Maria  della  Pace,  the  foun- 
dation of  Sixtus  IV.  There  we  find  one  of  the  most 
important  of  his  frescoes.  The  Four  Sibyls,  painted 
because  Michael  Angelo  had  painted  Sibyls.  Only 
this  time  he  seems  to  have  been  inspired  in  a  manner 
more  worthy  of  his  genius.  At  S.  Maria  the  impres- 
sionable young  man  shows  himself  a  proselyte  of  the 
idea  that  it  is  necessary,  even  in  religious  paintings, 
to  rival  the  statuary  of  the  ancients  in  beauty  of  form ; 
and  the  pagan  subject  of  the  Sibyls,  in  Avhich  what  is 
{esthetic  in  the  two  religions  is  united,  seemed  to  him 
a  happy  occasion  for  affirming  these  doctrines ;  with- 
out, however,  renouncing  his  own  delicate  sentiment, 
or  even  those  laws  of  composition  which  he  had  in- 
herited from  painters  impregnated  with  the  teachings 
of  Savonarola.  Thus  the  fresco,  Avhich  surmounts 
the  large  arch  of  a  not  very  deep  chapel,  recalls,  but 


S.  MAKIA  DELLA  PACE.  267 

with  an  interval,  the  grouping  of  Perugino.  The 
Cumsean  Sibyl,  the  Persic,  the  Phrygian,  the  Tibur- 
tine,  are  pensive  figures  and  not  viragoes  after  the 
antique ;  wholly  free  from  violence,  their  strength  is 
veiled  in  grace.  There  is  much  life — spiritual  hfe — 
in  their  tranquillity  ;  they  are  the  prophetesses  of  a 
deity  who  was  to  be  born  in  a  stable. 

But  how  completely  do  the  accessory  figures  show 
Raphael's  resolution  to  carry  on  the  contest  in  a 
manner  and  with  an  interpretation  all  his  own.  A 
cherub,  even  more  exquisite  than  those  of  the  Vati- 
can, is  placed  on  the  keystone  of  the  arch,  betAveen 
two  Seraphim,  who  turn  right  and  left  to  display  on 
scrolls  the  predictions  with  which  the  Holy  Spirit  is 
to  inspire  his  priestesses.  At  either  extremity  other 
divine  messengers  hover  over  the  Sibyls,  as  if  to 
breathe — unconsciously  upon  the  first  three,  and  upon 
the  fourth  against  her  Avill, — the  mystery  Avhicli  they 
are  to  announce  to  the  pagan  world.  The  second 
Sibyl  to  the  right  is  a  reminiscence  of  the  fine  Im- 
peria  that  we  shall  meet  again  in  the  Parnassus.  We 
must  not  forget  that  Raphael's  assistant  in  the  execu- 
tion of  the  work  was  the  pure  and  candid  Timoteo 
Viti,  whom  the  deposition  of  the  dukes  of  Urbino 
exiled  from  Rome,  and  Avho  had  been  the  favorite 
disciple  of  Francia. 

What  is  difficult  to  understand  is  how  Sanzio,  after 
sustaining  the  competition  with  so  much  brilliancv, 
should  have  repudiated  his  natural  gifts  in  the  Isaiah, 


268  KOME. 

with  the  object  of  surpassing  Michael  Angelo.  How- 
ever it  may  be,  the  game  went  against  him ;  in  the 
extravagant  passion  of  the  time  for  anatomical  study, 
Buonarotti  had  the  wind  in  his  sails,  and  his  word 
Avas  law :  he  came  one  day  with  a  large  train  to  S. 
Agostino's,  and  standing  in  front  of  that  unseasonable 
brother  of  the  Prophets  of  the  Sixtine,  proclaimed 
aloud  the  sublimity  of  the  fresco,  congratulating  the 
artist  on  the  enormous  stride  which  he  had  taken  in 
it ;  he  could  thus  award  a  palm  to  himself  with  honor, 
and  relegate  to  the  second  rank,  by  eulogizing  a  work 
so  different  from  Raphael's  earlier  labors,  the  whole 
handiwork  of  this  sublime  artist. 

At  a  little  distance  from  the  church  of  S.  Luigi  del 
Francesi,  and  in  the  neighborhood  of  Pompey's 
theatre, — a  swarming  quarter  of  which  the  Campo  di 
Fiori  is  the  centre, — we  come  across  some  French 
associations  in  the  Riario  Palace,  which  in  our  own 
day  w^itnessed  the  end  of  a  tragedy. 

In  the  church  of  S.S.  Lorenzo  e  Damaso  entered 
from  the  court-yard  of  the  Palace,  are  to  be  seen  a 
fine  Florentine  tomb,  the  exquisite  bust  of  a  princess 
Massimi,  the  tombs  of  Sadolet,  the  diplomatic  cardinal 
and  poet,  and  of  Annibale  Caro,  who  translated  Vir- 
gil ;  finally,  the  mausoleum  of  a  scholar,  a  juriscon- 
sult, an  economist,  an  Italian  statesman,  who  made 
himself  famous  in  three  countries — in  Geneva,  in 
France,  and  at  Rome,  where  he  died  from  the  blow 
of  an  assassin.     Tenerani  has  carved  an  admirable 


THE  ASSASSINATION  OF  ROSSI.  269 

bust  on  the  tomb  which  Pius  IX.  erected  to  his  min- 
ister, Count  Pellegrixo  Rossi. 

The  memory  of  this  tragedy  lends  a  certain  sombre- 
ness  to  the  church,  and  the  palace  where  the  crime 
was  perpetrated.  Like  the  first  of  the  Caesars,  Rossi 
was  warned  five  times  in  the  same  day  of  the  lot  that 
awaited  him  ;  the  public  possessed  the  secret  of  a 
plot  against  Avhich  no  obstacle  was  interposed.  De- 
voted to  the  task  of  obtaining  for  Italy  by  means  of 
negotiation  those  liberal  conquests,  which  he  dovibted 
her  power  to  win  through  the  chances  of  war,  of  or- 
ganizing at  Rome  a  parliamentary  system,  of  moderat- 
ing the  excesses  of  revolutionists  ;  hostile  like  every 
lover  of  freedom  to  the  tyranny  of  the  plebs,  and  the 
victim  of  a  demagogic  party  spurred  on,  they  say,  by 
the  aristocratic  faction,  he  was  immolated  exactly  as 
he  would  have  been  in  the  time  of  the  Gracchi  or  of 
Marius. 

It  was  the  15th  of  November,  1848  :  Rossi  was  ex- 
pected at  the  Assembly,  where  he  was  to  develop  his 
plan  of  an  Italian  confederation  under  the  segis  of  the 
sovereign  pontiff.  At  daybreak  an  anonymous  note 
put  this  minister  of  the  first  constitutional  pope  on  his 
guard  :  Caveat  consul.  A  moment  after,  a  diplomat- 
ist, informed  of  the  conspiracy  by  his  valet,  came  to 
warn  him ;  the  wife  of  one  of  his  colleagues  wrote  to 
the  same  efi'ect.  At  the  Vatican,  whither  he  had 
gone  to  receive  the  final  counsels  of  the  Holy  Father, 
a  chamberlain  exposed  the  plot  to  him.     Finally^  as 


270  ROME. 

he  was  coming  down  after  his  audience  into  the  court 
of  S.  Damasus,  a  priest  wdio  awaited  him  announced 
the  plans  of  the  murderers.  "  I  have  no  time,"  re- 
phed  the  first  minister  ;  "  they  are  waiting  for  me  at 
the  Chancellery."  Then  the  ecclesiastic  seized  him 
by  the  arm,  and  clinging  to  him  cried,  "  If  you  go 
there,  you  are  a  dead  man  !"  Rossi  seemed  troubled; 
but,  after  a  short  silence,  he  went  on  as  far  as  the 
staircase,  where  he  said  to  the  priest  who  still  followed 
him,  "  Causam  optimam  assumpsi ;  miserehitur  Beus.-^ 
He  then  went  straight  to  the  Riario  Palace,  where 
a  great  crowd  had  assembled,  the  anticipation  of  a 
sight  which  was  vaguely  hoped  for  having  attracted 
throngs  of  bravoes  and  idlers  to  the  portico,  the  steps, 
and  as  far  as  the  landing  of  the  first  story,  under  the 
very  eyes  of  the  civic  guard,  drawn  up  in  the  court, 
which,  without  clearing  the  peristyle  or  protecting 
the  minister,  saw  the  preparations  for  the  murder 
going  on  without  an  attempt  to  hinder  it. 

Count  Rossi  entered  by  the  great  door ;  he  was 
immediately  greeted  by  loud  shouts  and  some  thirty 
Bersaglieri  cut  off  his  retreat,  while  the  other  con- 
spirators threw  themselves  in  his  path.  He  passed 
the  portico  with  deliberate  step,  and  with  his  head 
upright,  and  was  proceeding  to  mount  the  second 
flight  when  the  Bersaglieri  rushed  upon  him  and 
thrust  him  against  the  w^all  in  which  was  a  small 
doorway.  At  this  instant  one  of  the  bravoes,  slip- 
ping between  Rossi  and  the  door,  struck  him  rudely 


THE  ASSASSINATION  OF  KOSSI.  271 

on  the  left  shoulder.  By  a  natural  movement  the 
minister  turned  his  head,  thus  exposing  his  neck, 
when  one  Jergo  took  advantage  of  the  expected 
motion  to  plunge  a  poniard  of  great  length  into  his 
throat.  This  monster  and  his  accomphces  remained 
on  the  spot  without  any  risk  of  arrest. 

Instantly  informed  of  what  had  happened,  the 
Assembly  of  Deputies  took  no  measures,  and  the 
president  passed  to  the  order  of  the  day.  At  Rome 
in  a  case  of  murder,  the  disgrace  falls  on  the  victim. 
"  Era  uno  forestiere  e  un''  eretico,^^  said  the  Traste- 
verini ;  while  the  great  men  of  another  class  only 
half-concealed  their  satisfaction.  When  Martinez  de 
la  Rosa  showed  his  stupefaction  at  the  sitting  not 
even  being  interrupted,  "  Basta !"  a  high  personage 
answered  him,  "  was  this  Genevese,  then,  the  king 
of  Rome  ?"  Cries  of  joy  and  a  sort  of  delirium  fol- 
lowed the  deed ;  the  wife  and  children  of  Rossi,  so 
lately  saluted  with  smiles,  were  obliged  to  witness 
this  ferocious  exidtation  going  on  beneath  their  very 
windows,  and  to  have  their  grief  insidted.  In  the 
absence  of  all  hindrance,  a  duty  which  the  chief  of 
police  declined,  the  murderers  fraternized  with  the 
troops,  and  in  the  evening  the  horde  shouted  the 
patriotic  hymn  JBandiera  Sacra  in  front  of  Galetti's 
dwelling,  substituting  for  those  two  words,  Sacro  Pug- 
nale  (holy  dagger).  The  next  day  the  threatened 
rising  broke  out ;  and  on  the  24th  of  the  month  the 
sovereign  of  Rome  fled  to  Graeta.  • 


272  ROME. 

Count  Pellegrhio  Rossi,  the  Italian  from  Modena, 
who  had  held  high  posts  in  the  administration  of  the 
Gauls,  was  stabbed  about  a  hundred  paces  from  the 
curia  where,  under  the  steel  of  the  accomplices  of 
Brutus,  Julius  Caesar  fell  at  the  feet  of  the  statue  of 
Pompey. 

Let  us  seek  this  statue  that  beheld  the  murder  of 
Caesar. 

To  find  it,  we  must  go  to  the  Spada  Palace  ;  but 
even  if  the  display  of  popular  manners  and  customs 
in  the  piazza  Campo  di  Fiori  does  not  make  us  for- 
get our  object  in  amusement  on  the  way,  the  Far- 
nese  Palace,  which  we  must  pass  on  the  Via  del 
Mascherone,  solicits  a  visit  that  we  can  hardly  refuse. 
The  last  king  of  Naples  lived  there  until  1870,  his 
family  inheriting  it  from  the  Farnese.  On  the  upper 
floor  is  the  Gallery  of  Yignola,  and  the  celebrated  fres- 
coes of  Annibale  Caracci,  the  Triumph  of  Bacchus ; 
but  we  must  not  fail  to  make  a  long  halt  beloAv  in  the 
splendid  court,  a  cloister  with  two  rows  of  arches, 
surmounted  by  a  third  order  with  Corinthian  pilasters. 

I  would  beg  every  traveller  interested  in  art  to 
study  this  building  well :  the  vast  edifice,  the  plans 
for  which  Alexander  Farnese,  before  becoming  pope, 
that  is  before  1534,  confided  to  Antonio  di  San  Gallo, 
is  one  of  those  classics  which  it  is  well  worth  while 
to  read  over  again.  When  Quatremere  de  Quincy 
wrote,  the  Farnese  was  considered  the  finest  palace 
of  modern  architecture. 


THE  FAKNESE  PALACE.  273 

Giacomo  della  Porta,  towards  the  end  of  the  six- 
teenth century,  added  the  facade  at  the  back,  sepa- 
rated from  the  Via  Giulia  by  a  small  garden.  The 
framework  of  the  florid  architecture  of  this  loggia 
is  a  feast  for  the  eyes,  especially  Avhen,  from  the 
arches  of  the  Ponte  Sisto,  we  see  its  richly  colored 
walls  brightening  the  horizon.  The  color  of  the 
Farnese  Palace  is  indeed  one  of  its  great  charms : 
brick  mixed  Avith  stone  forms  the  ground  of  the 
facades ;  the  entablature,  the  bands,  bossages,  win- 
dows, and  columns  are  of  travertine  taken  from  the 
theatre  of  Marcellus,  and  even  from  the  Coliseum, 
which  still  seems  all  but  untouched,  and  from  which 
centuries  have  drawn  supplies  as  if  from  a  quarry. 
There  is  now  nothing  to  be  seen  in  the  court  but  two 
sarcophagi :  the  one  with  perpendicular  flutings  is  a 
Christian  tomb  of  the  third  century  ;  the  other,  in 
the  form  of  a  gondola,  loaded  with  sculptures  and 
ornaments,  has  acquired  a  great  celebrity,  being 
sometimes  supposed  to  have  held  the  remains  of 
Csecilia  Metella.  It  cannot  really  be  older  than  the 
time  of  Hadrian. 

In  this  quarter,  where  we  wander  in  search  of  a 
statue  made  immortal  by  the  murder  of  Csesar,  every- 
thing takes  us  back  to  the  time  of  Pompey  and  to 
undeniable  witnesses  of  the  tragedy.  For  a  popu- 
lous neighborhood  the  streets  are  most  inconven- 
iently laid  out  in  curves  and  awkward  angles  very 
unfavorable  to  circidation.     If  we  were  to  remove 

18 


274  EOME. 

from  the  massive  apse  of  S.  Andrew  of  the  Valley 
some  of  the  surrounding  houses,  as  well  as  the  Pio 
Palace,  rebuilt  by  the  family  of  the  Ursini  in  1440, 
and  owned  in  our  time  by  the  Chevalier  Righetti,  we 
should  find  at  a  certain  depth  the  pavement  that  was 
trodden  nineteen  centuries  since  by  senators  on  their 
way  to  the  curia  of  Pompey,  and  exhume  the  founda- 
tions of  his  portico  and  theatre,  the  first  in  which,  in 
spite  of  sumptuary  edicts,  stone  and  marble  were  em- 
ployed. 

The  Righetti  Palace  has  deep  two-storied  cellars 
beneath  the  court.  I  saw  these  caves,  remains  of  the 
portico  and  the  theatre,  beyond  the  Palazzo  Pio. 
Some  workmen  who  were  digging  in  this  spot  struck 
upon  what  seemed  to  be  a  block  of  gold ;  under  the 
gilding  they  recognized  bronze.  At  length  they 
made  out  a  Hercules,  fourteen  feet  high,  whose  face, 
hands,  and  arms  were  intact,  one  of  the  feet  alone 
being  gone.  The  head  with  a  circular  hole  behind 
denoted  that  the  statue  once  delivered  oracles ;  on 
one  arm  the  son  of  Alcrnena  carried  the  skin  of  the 
Nemean  lion. 

This  enormous  bronze,  cast  in  a  single  piece,  it  was 
proposed  to  chi'isten  Mastai,  in  honor  of  Pius  IX.,  to 
whose  generosity  solely  Rome  is  indebted  for  its 
preservation.  8ome  Russian  agents,  favored  by  a 
connivance  Avhich  we  cannot  understand,  had  in  fact 
concluded  their  bargain  with  the  owner.  As  no  work 
of  art  can  be   carried  out  of  Rome  without  permis- 


THE  STATUE  OF  POMPEY.  275 

sion,  they  must  have  had  the  Hercules  secretly  con- 
veyed to  a  piece  of  ground  acquired  by  the  czar  for 
excavation,  and  there  had  it  publicly  unburied ;  this 
comedy  is  well  known.  Notice,  however,  was  given 
to  Pius  IX,,  who  insisted  on  seeing  the  statue,  and 
declared  that  he  woidd  not  let  such  a  masterpiece  be 
carried  away. 

In  crossing  the  piazza  Capo  di  Ferro  I  had  already 
noticed  the  Spada  Palace.  The  Colossus  of  the  de- 
feated of  Pharsalia  was  exhumed  in  1552,  near  the 
Palazzo  Riario,  and  nearer  still  to  the  theatre  of  Pom- 
pey,  among  the  substructions  of  its  portico  and  of 
the  chamber,  Avhere  was  perpetrated  the  classic  model 
of  all  those  assassinations  called  political.  When  they 
found  this  figure  of  the  man  whom  the  influence  of 
Sulla,  and  not  the  suffrage  of  the  people,  proclaimed 
the  great  Pompey,  the  statue  had  on  its  neck  the  first 
layer  of  a  party-wall ;  whence  it  followed  that  by  a 
decree  of  consular  justice,  the  marble  was  to  be  cut 
in  two  and  divided  between  the  rival  proprietors. 
Cardinal  Capo  di  Ferro  interfered,  however,  and  by 
way  of  recompense  was  presented  with  the  statue  by 
Julius  III,,  who  had  purchased  it.  The  attitude  of 
the  figure  is  majestic  without  being  forced ;  the  feat- 
ures have  a  striking  individuality,  at  once  expressive 
and  severe.  The  triumvir  bears  the  object  of  his 
cheated  ambition — the  globe,  an  attribute  that  he 
may,  however,  have  appropriated  to  himself  by  hav- 
ing his  head  placed  on  the  decapitated  trunk  of  some 


276  EOME. 

god  5  for  the  head  is  fitted  on,  and  Pompey  was  not 
too  modest.  Such  substitutions  were  frequent  enough 
under  the  emperors. 

So  far  as  the  identity  of  this  figure  with  that  which 
saw  Csesar  expire  under  the  bloAvs  of  Cassius  and 
Brutus  is  concerned,  the  presumption  may  be  reason- 
ably upheld.  It  was  excavated  near  the  spot  where 
the  murder  was  committed  ;  Suetonius  informing  us 
that  he  saw  it  "  in  a  palace  adjoining  the  theatre  of 
Pompeius,  whither  Augustus  had  had  it  transported." 
As  it  is  not  very  probable  that  the  hero,  at  a  time 
when  they  did  not  multiply  statues,  would  be  repre- 
sented twice  imder  the  same  portico,  we  have  good 
grounds  for  admitting,  in  spite  of  a  school  that  is 
ready  to  deny  everything,  that  the  colossal  Pompey 
of  the  Palazzo  Spada  probably  saw  the  fall  of  Caesar. 
The  statue  is  not  very  well  known,  the  Spada  princes 
never  having  allowed  it  to  be  either  modelled  or 
copied. 

The  attraction  which  led  me  out  of  my  way  across 
the  intricacies  of  the  old  quarter,  was  a  stall  near  the 
Piazza  Montanara,  where,  under  awnings  erected  at 
a  street  corner,  amateurs  and  clericals  were  disputing 
over  some  smoked  and  trashy  pictures,  antiquities  of 
modern  date,  and  old  books  ill-used  by  time.  Much 
theology,  which  was  not  my  affair,  but  which  inter- 
ested the  seminarists,  a  Dominican,  and  some  Philip- 
pines, who,  for  cheapness,  read  the  books  on  the  spot 
instead  of  buying  them  ;  one,  however,  pressing  three 


PALAZZO  MATTEL  277 

small  coins  to  his  heart,  was  driving  his  bargain  with 
much  fury  and  gesticulation.  The  group  formed  so 
good  a  subject  that  a  painter  posted  ten  paces  otF 
maliciously  took  out  his  pencil. 

As  I  folloAved  the  labyrinth  of  streets  that  end  at 
the  back  of  the  Capitol,  a  wrong  turn  brought  me  to 
the  Fountain  of  the  Tortoises^  that  a  little  while  be- 
fore I  had  been  vainly  seeking.  Imagine  two  basins, 
the  upper  of  which  is  supported  by  four  young  Tri- 
tons, whose  feet  rest  on  the  heads  of  four  dolphins ; 
these  aquatic  divinities  are  thrusting  tortoises  into 
the  upper  vase,  from  which  the  water  overflows. 
The  complexity  of  the  design  in  no  way  interferes 
with  the  clearness  and  graceful  movement  of  the 
figures ;  all  is  animated,  unusual,  and  charming. 
Giacomo  della  Porta  designed  the  Fontana  delle  Tar- 
tarughe,  but  the  bronze  figures  are  the  work  of  Tad- 
deo  Landini,  of  Florence. 

Close  at  hand  rises  the  lofty  and  sombre  gate  of 
one  of  those  palaces  which  have  fallen  from  their  high 
estate — proud  homes  of  extinct  families  on  which 
time  and  misery  imprint  their  marks  j  it  is  the  ancient 
Palace  of  the  Mattel.  In  the  court,  which  is  sur- 
rounded by  a  peristyle  contemporary  with  Pius  V., 
may  still  be  seen  some  statues,  and  a  few  busts. 
Staunch  at  their  posts,  the  Emperors  exposed  to  wind 
and  rain  mount  guard  in  this  solitude  over  the  re- 
mains of  their  thermte  and  villas.  The  four  walls 
are  a  museum  which  nobody  thinks  any  more  about. 


278  ROME. 

And  that  is  all  that  is  left  of  the  famous  Mattel  col- 
lection, the  Avonders  of  which  have  been  reproduced 
by  engravings,  and  which  have  been  admired  on  this 
very  spot  by  the  greatest  personages  in  Europe.  At 
the  bottom  of  the  court  a  hooper  was  fastening  staves 
round  a  tub,  and  a  dyer  was  Avashing  out  some  skeins 
of  red  wool.  A  few  steps  from  the  house  two  Cia- 
battini  had  erected  their  stall  between  a  couple  of 
ancient  columns,  and  Avere  patching  their  shoes  under 
the  entablature  of  a  palace. 

Ruminating  on  this  decay  and  a  thousand  other 
things  suggested  by  the  neighborhood,  I  came  sud- 
denly upon  the  Avestern  slope  of  the  Palatine,  only 
realizing  Avhere  I  Avas  Avhen  I  found  myself  leaning 
against  the  Four-faced  Arch  (Quadrifrons)  assigned 
by  the  A'ulgar  to  Janus,  w^ho  hoAvcA'cr  was  only  tAvo- 
faced.  The  second  of  the  Antonines  had  this  build- 
ing constructed  at  the  end  of  the  Forum  Boarium, 
which  has  preserved  its  character  so  well  that  if  you 
were  asked  to  make  a  guess  as  to  its  purpose,  you 
Avould  at  once  think  of  a  cattle-market.  Many  people 
used  to  imagine  that  it  Avas  the  Campo  Vaccino,  which 
up  to  our  time  inherited  this  function.  What  per- 
petuated the  mistake  w^as  that  the  Forum  Romanum, 
Avhich  adjoins  some  immense  storehouses  for  fodder, 
occasionally  served  to  give  stabling  for  a  few  hours 
to  the  carts  and  cattle  that  had  brought  the  stores  of 
hay  to  the  neighboring  streets.  More  than  once  I 
have  seen  this  noble  space  thus  rustically  blocked  up ; 


Church  of  S.  Giorgio  in  Velabro 


ARCH  OF  SEPTIMIUS  SEVERUS.  279 

the  confusion  of  carts  and  wagons  and  long-horned 
oxen  gathered  at  the  foot  of  the  ancient  temples 
blended  Avith  the  majesty  of  the  spot  a  touch  of  rural 
homeliness  not  without  poetry. 

In  a  country  where  all  the  business  of  life  is  con- 
ducted in  the  open  air,  the  use  of  porticoes  is  very 
ancient ;  the  Quadrifrons  arch  was  a  Loggia  in  Avhich 
cattle-dealers  transacted  their  business ;  Janus  had 
nothing  to  do  with  it.  In  the  thirteenth  century,  the 
Frangipani  erected  a  little  fortress  here.  Nearly  in 
front,  opposite  the  small  and  graceful  basilica  of  S. 
Giorgio  in  Velabro,  you  notice  a  charming  miniature 
of  a  triumphal  arch  built,  or  one  might  almost  say 
chiselled,  by  the  jewellers  and  cattle-dealers  in  honor 
of  Septimius  Severus^  from  Avhom  they  received 
various  favors.  Thia  cube  loaded  with  ornaments  is 
pierced  by  a  single  opening.  As  on  the  other  monu- 
ments of  this  reign,  Caracalla  on  coming  to  the  throne 
erased  the  name  of  his  brother  Geta  in  the  dedicatory 
inscriptions  in  which  Septimius  Severus,  the  Empress 
Julia,  and  their  children  figure.  One  of  the  pilasters 
represents  the  emperor  and  his  wife  offering  a  sacri- 
fice ;  on  the  other  were  Antoninus  Caracalla  and  his 
brother ;  but  the  figure  of  the  latter  was  erased  by 
the  fratricide.  We  know  that  he  poniarded  Geta  in 
the  arms  of  their  mother,  being  impelled  to  this  haste 
by  the  fear  of  being  anticipated  in  the  match  of  fra- 
ternal emulation. 

To  get  into  the  church  of  S.   George  you  must  go 


280  ROME. 

to  a  neighboring  house  for  a  Portinaio,  Avho  seems 
surprised  at  your  visit.  Then,  under  a  charming 
portico  of  the  thirteenth  century  erected  by  the  prior 
Stefano,  you  enter  a  temple  whose  aisles  are  marked 
by  twelve  columns  of  granite  and  four  of  fluted  violet 
marble,  the  shafts  of  which,  without  stylobates,  bury 
themselves  in  the  mosaics  of  the  pavement,  like  tree- 
trunks  in  a  flowery  sward.  Heavy  arches  trust  them- 
selves to  these  rather  slight  piUars  ;  the  ancient  ceil- 
ing matches  the  dilapidation  of  a  pavement  patched 
with  inscriptions,  and  green  with  mould,  while  the 
whole  place  is  impregnated  with  that  curious  damp 
smell  old  marbles  have,  the  chilly  incense  of  the 
buildings  of  a  thousand  years  ago. 

Although  Pope  Zacharias,  at  the  period  when  the 
Merovingians  were  coming  to  their  end,  reconstructed 
the  church  where  S.  Gregory  had  pronounced  one  of 
his  homilies,  and  though  after  that  a  nephew  of  Boni- 
face VIII.  had  it  partially  decorated,  still  it  has  pre- 
served its  antique  character.  In  Italy,  and  at  Rome 
especially,  the  most  eftectual  preserver  of  ancient 
buildings  is  poverty ;  the  great  city  has  never  been 
rich  enough  to  make  blunders  everywhere.  The 
charming  altar,  Avith  its  mosaics  and  its  ciborium, — 
an  open  campanile  formed  of  several  ranges  of  small 
columns, — is  only  of  the  thirteenth  century,  but  it  is 
intact.  The  aisles,  which  by  a  singular  arrange- 
ment narrow  from  the  porch  to  the  presbyteriura, 
end  in   a  Campo-santo  of  inscriptions  contemporary 


S.  GIOEGIO  IN  VELABRO.  281 

with  the  catacombs,  and  which  no  doubt  Pope  Zach- 
arias  must  have  had  removed  from  some  cemetery. 
The  tribune  was  once  covered  Avith  mosaics,  re- 
placed later  by  frescoes  sometimes  attributed  to 
Giotto.  The  presbyterium  is  shut  off  by  antique 
barriers,  some  of  them  very  curious.  Those  in  the 
chapel  to  the  right  are  of  exactly  the  same  design 
and  the  same  marble  as  some  found  in  the  Coliseum, 
which  date  from  Vespasian,  and  were  themselves  an 
imitation  ;  for  the  excavations  of  Chevalier  Rosa  on 
the  Palatine  proved  to  me  that  the  parapets  of  the 
Flavian  amphitheatre  were  reproductions  of  a  railing 
in  the  palace  of  Caligula. 

Let  us  pause  near  the  arch  of  the  Cloaca  Maxima 
to  look  at  the  waters  of  the  Acqua  Argentina,  said  to 
have  their  source  in  the  Lake  of  Juturna,  and  Avhich 
remain  as  pure  and  crystal  to-day  as  when  the  Ves- 
tals used  to  draw  there  •,  next  let  us  cross  the  street 
of  the  Greeks,  and  the  Marrana  stream  which  Csesar 
banked-in,  and,  turning  from  the  shores  of  the  Tiber, 
having  caught  a  glimpse  of  the  Aventine,  let  us  there 
bring  to  a  close  this  journey  with  all  its  miscellaneous 
associations.  If  chance  had  turned  us  to  right  or  left, 
the  harvest  would  have  been  just  as  rich  ;  when  you 
have  explored  the  streets  of  Rome,  house  by  house, 
you  know  too  well  that  to  undertake  to  describe 
everything  can  only  end  in  skimming  over  a  subject 
whose  real  extent  is  boundless. 

The  Aventine,  where  three  convents  stand  out  on 


282  KOME. 

a  deserted  plateau,  was  once  the  quarter  of  the  plebs. 
It  was  there  that,  630  years  before  our  era.  King 
Ancus  is  said  to  have  quartered  the  inhabitants  of 
four  conquered  or  destroyed  Latin  cities.  Rome  thus 
became  for  the  vanquished  first  a  place  of  exile,  then 
a  colony,  and  finally  a  country.  Historians  assert 
that  in  order  to  protect  this  suburb  from  foreign  in- 
cursions, this  king  surrounded  the  Aventine  with  a 
strong  wall,  and  Dionysius  of  Hahcarnassus  even 
traced  its  outline.  But  statements  regarding  a 
nearly  fabulous  epoch  cannot  be  accepted  uncondi- 
tionally, especially  when  they  are  supported  by  no 
palpable  proof. 

Some  years  ago  the  Jesuits  o^vned  at  the  back  of 
this  hill,  between  the  Dominicans  and  the  plain  of  the 
Circus  Maximus,  a  vineyard  from  which  an  anti- 
quarian in  his  saunterings  saw  one  day  two  carts 
come  out,  containing  stones  magnificently  cut.  He 
penetrated  into  the  enclosure  and  perceived  that  the 
gardener  of  the  fathers  was  working  a  quarry  of 
blocks  of  peperino  perfectly  squared ;  then,  follow- 
ing the  tracks  already  made,  our  archaeologist  assured 
himself  of  the  exhumation  of  a  long  thick  wall  which 
traversed  the  sinuosities  of  the  hill.  The  construc- 
tion, of  Titanic  solidity,  Avas  Etruscan ;  houses  in 
ruins  placed  long  ago  over  this  buried  wall,  and  built 
in  a  reticular  style  that  was  in  use  between  the  reigns 
of  Augustus  and  Vespasian,  proved  that  from  the 
first  century  of  the  empire  they  no  longer  took  any 


THE  AVENTINE.  283 

account  of  this  enclosure,  Avhich  perhaps  even  then 
had  ceased  to  be  known  :  here  were  signs  of  great 
antiquity.  Finally,  a  comparison  of  the  ancient 
writers  and  an  examination  of  the  ground  justified 
its  identification  with  the  old  enclosure  which  King 
Ancus  is  supposed  to  have  built  upon  the  Aventine, 
for  the  purpose  of  isolating  the  Latin  community 
which  he  established  there.  In  our  time  it  is  the 
most  deserted  of  all  the  Roman  hills ;  the  old  streets 
have  lost  their  raison  d^etre  along  with  the  buildings 
which  used  to  line  them.  The  Priorato  of  S.  Maria 
replaces  the  Bona  Dea,  a  temple  celebrated  by  Cicero's 
epistles  :  S.  Sabina  rises  between  the  Temple  of  Juno 
and  the  remains  of  the  fortress  of  Honorius  III.,  as 
the  church  Avhich  replaces  the  house  where  S.  Peter 
baptized  S.  Prisca,  rises  between  the  sites  of  those 
of  Minerva  and  Diana. 

Here  once  stood  a  convent  of  imperishable  mem- 
ory. On  the  24th  of  August,  410,  the  hordes  of 
Alaric  invaded  the  cloistered  palace  of  Marcella,  wdio 
was  left  alone  with  Principia,  her  daughter  by  adop- 
tion :  they  treated  these  noble  Avomen  so  frightfully, 
in  order  to  extort  from  them  treasures  which  had  long: 
since  been  lavished  on  the  poor,  that  Marcella,  after 
she  had  been  carried  to  the  basilica  of  S.  Paul,  a 
place  of  refuge,  almost  instantly  expired.  This  Avas 
a  mortal  grief  to  Jerome ;  it  mingled  Avith  his  anguish 
at  the  capture  of  Rome,  Avhich  drcAv  tears  from  8. 
Augustin  as  Avell.     When  the  \'ery  uni\'erse  seemed 


284  ROME. 

overthrown  with  the  loss  of  its  belief  in  the  eternity 
of  the  city  of  the  Caesars,  Jerome,  forsaking  his  labor 
in  the  depths  of  Judaea,  only  uttered  one  brief  plaint 
— "  The  light  of  the  world  is  gone  out ;  the  empire 
has  been  deprived  of  its  head ;  the  world  expires  in 

a  single  city,  the  mother  and  tomb  of  its  people 

Who  shall  be  safe  if  Rome  has  perished  ?" 

In  the  midst  of  the  calamities  which  filled  this 
lofty  soul  with  consternation,  Jerome  thought  of  his 
beloved  convent  on  the  Aventine,  and  of  that  spirit- 
ual family  with  whom  he  had  passed  divinest  hours, 
watering  with  his  tears  memories  which  now  flower 
again  for  us. 


Wall  of  Romulus 


i^^fe- 


THE  WALL  OF  ROMULUS.  285 


CHAPTER    XIV. 

Half-locked  within  the  modern  city,  the  Palatine, 
round  which  the  seven  hills  group  themselves,  is,  as 
we  know,  the  primitive  site  of  Rome.  It  was  there, 
according  to  the  legend,  that  the  twin  sons  of  Mars 
and  Sylvia  were  suckled  by  a  she-wolf,  and  reared 
by  the  shepherd  Faustulus ;  and  it  was  there  that, 
after  their  recognition  by  Numitor,  they  founded  the 
new  city  under  the  guidance  of  favorable  auguries. 
The  site  determined  on,  Romidus  proceeded  to  trace 
the  pomcerium  or  sacred  enclosure  of  the  future  capi- 
tal ;  harnessing  to  a  plough  a  heifer  and  a  bull  without 
blemish,  he  raised  his  wall  on  the  furrow  traced  be- 
tween the  rising  and  the  going  down  of  the  sun. 
Although,  according  to  all  appearance,  the  line  de- 
scribes an  elongated  trapezium  with  a  break  towards 
the  east,  the  city  of  Romulus  owes  to  this  enclosure 
its  designation  of  Boma  quadrafa. 

Among  the  legends  invented  to  occupy  our  minds, 
the  most  seductive  are  those  which  project  historic 
proofs  into  the  domain  of  fable.  To  allow  that  Romu- 
lus ever  existed  even  is  a  condescension  now  quite 
out  of  fashion.  Livy,  Dionysius,  Plutarch,  Tacitus 
even,  raise  a  smile  by  their  credulity.     Does  not  the 


286  EOME. 

last  of  them,  outdoing  his  predecessors,  take  it  into 
his  head  in  the  twelfth  book  of  the  Annals  to  describe 
complacently  the  outline  of  Roma  quadrata  :  "  Igitiir 
aforo  hoario  (towards  the  west)  uhi  cereumtauri  simu- 
lacrum aspicimiis,  quia  id  genus  animalium  aratro  suh- 
dihir,  sidcus  designandi  opxridi  ajeptus,  id  magnam 
Herculis  aram  amplectcrehir  :  inde  certis  spatiis  inter- 
jedi  lapides  perima  mantis  Palatini  ad  aram  Consi, 
mox  ad  Curias  veteres,  turn  ad  sacellum  Lariuni,  forum- 
que  HomanumP  We  knoAV  from  other  writers  that 
to  the  east  the  wall  opened  at  the  Porta  Mugionis, 
built  by  Romulus,  and  that  there  it  made  an  angle  in 
the  groves  of  the  Temple  of  Apollo. 

Fifteen  more  or  less  sceptical  centuries  have  dis- 
dained these  indications ;  but  our  era,  which  is  as 
prompt  in  denial  as  it  is  ardent  in  research,  has  caused 
the  knowing  ones  some  embarrassment,  by  excavat- 
ing at  the  very  points  described  by  Tacitus,  portions 
of  the  massive  wall  of  Roma  quadrata.  This  curious 
construction  consists  of  enormous  blocks  of  masonry 
placed  four  or  six  thick,  according  to  the  Etruscan 
system  ;  the  nature  of  the  materials  showing  that  it 
cannot  be  later  than  some  tribal  chief,  reduced  by  the 
want  of  any  territory  beyond  the  Palatine,  to  use 
the  tufa  which  porous,  fragile,  and  difficidt  to  work, 
forms  the  rocky  base  of  the  hill  and  is  not  found 
elsewhere.  The  buildings  of  the  later  kings,  who 
have  been  as  boldly  charged  witli  never  having  ex- 
isted as  their  founder,  are  of   fine   stone   extracted 


THE  PALATINE.  287 

from  the  surrounding  quarries,  and  even  from  the 
Capitol,  Avhich  Romidus  did  not  possess  when  he  had 
to  content  himself  with  the  volcanic  scoriae  for  his 
wall. 

As  you  sit  facing  the  Aventine,  the  residence  of 
Remus  and  the  Fabii,  on  the  remains  of  the  ponuKrium 
of  Romulus,  you  may  fairly  imagine  that  on  this  very 
spot,  for  having  contemptuously  leaped  over  his  grow- 
ing Avail,  the  first  king  of  Rome  struck  down  his  twin 
brother,  crying,  "  Thus  perish  whosoever  shall  cross 
this  wall !"  It  was  above  the  cavern  of  Cacus,  where 
was  celebrated  the  victory  of  Hercules,  and  not  far 
from  i\\Q  ficHS  rumiualis,  that  tradition  placed  the  hut 
of  the  shepherd  Faustulus,  covered  with  reeds,  accord- 
ing to  Dionysius  of  Halicarnassus,  in  whose  lifetime 
both  the  fig-tree  and  the  hut  Avere  still  piously  pre- 
served. To  the  Avest  of  the  Porta  IMugionis,  at  the 
very  spot  indicated  by  LiA^y,  they  haA^e  excaA'ated 
the  peribolus  of  the  temple  dedicated  to  Jupiter  Stator 
by  the  founder  of  Rome,  when  the  god  made  the  flee- 
ing Romans  resume  the  offensive.  In  the  time  of 
Pliny  the  equestrian  statue  of  Cloelia  rose  opposite 
to  the  temple  reconstructed  by  Regulus  after  the 
Avar  of  the  Samnites.  Further  Avest  and  near  the 
Via  Sacra,  to  the  right  of  the  Temple  of  Vesta, 
the  ruins  of  the  Temple  of  Castor  mark  the  spot 
AA'here  the  Dioscuri  appeared  for  the  first  time.  If 
they  Avent  on  digging  indefinitely  in  the  tufa  of  this 
hill,  which  has  given  a  name  to   all  the  palaces  of 


288  EOME. 

the  world,  I  am  sure  that  they  would  finish  by  the 
discovery  of  Pallanteum,  the  Arcadian  colony  of  King 
Evander ! 

Before  letting  our  feet  stray  at  will  in  this  reno^vned 
spot,  to  which  the  excavations  of  recent  years  have 
lent  a  double  interest,  let  us  briefly  sketch  the  pres- 
ent aspect  of  this  Palatine  which,  less  spacious  than 
the  garden  of  the  Tuileries,  has  embraced  all  the 
grandeurs  of  Rome. 

An  embankment  separates  the  Palatine  from  the 
Via  Sacra.  At  the  entrance  you  ascend  by  a  flight 
of  broad  steps  to  w^here  the  Farnese  placed  their 
Casino,  when  they  transformed  the  Palatine  desert 
into  a  historical  garden.  Verdure  had  long  en- 
veloped the  enclosure  of  Romulus,  modern  generations 
falling  back  in  dismay  from  the  terrible  shadows  Avhich 
its  ruins  evoked.  It  seems  that  even  our  religion,  the 
faith  of  slaves  and  the  poor,  shrank  aAvay  from  this 
sanctuary  of  monarchical  unity  and  Roman  pride ; 
the  ponKerium  is  the  only  consecrated  ground  of  which 
Christianity  did  not  take  possession.  No  pope  touched 
the  Palatine  before  Paul  III.,  who  in  an  age  that  had 
become  reconciled  to  the  gods  of  Olympus,  built  a 
villa  there.  But  it  was  the  destiny  of  the  hill  to  re- 
main a  royal  appanage  ;  the  last  heiress  of  the  pon- 
tiff and  the  Farnese,  Elizabeth,  brought  the  Palatine 
to  the  King  of  Spain,  Philip  V.,  then  through  Don 
Carlos  it  entered  into  the  possession  of  the  kings  of 
Naples  J   and  finally  by  a  singular  play  of  fortune,  the 


EXCAVATIONS  ON  THE  PALATINE.  281) 

cradle  of  the  Cfesars  passed  from  the  house  of  Bour- 
bon into  the  hands  of  Napoleon  III.* 

The  good,  learned,  and  ingenious  Pietro  Rosa, 
epigraphist,  geographer,  consummate  Latinist,  expert 
geologist,  the  descendant  of  8alvator  Rosa,  had  been 
exploring  Rome  and  its  campagna  for  twenty  years, 
when  Napoleon  III.  chose  him  to  direct  the  excava- 
tions Avhich  he  proposed  to  undertake  in  the  Palatine, 
and  installed  him  in  the  midst  of  the  Farnese  gardens, 
Avhich  in  the  space  of  eight  years  through  his  labors 
■were  made  to  disclose  another  Pompeii.  His  house 
opened  to  the  south  on  a  little  garden  after  the  French 
manner,  beyond  which  rose  a  large,  irregular,  and 
dismantled  Loggia.  As  the  veil  of  verdure  was  re- 
moved there  were  gradually  revealed  treasures  of 
sculpture  and  archseological  indications  of  rare  value. 
Let  us  mention  among  the  most  remarkable  of  the 
former  a  draped  Venus  of  a  fine  Grecian  epoch,  an 
Apollo,  a  Milo  of  Crotona  without  a  head ;  a  hercu- 
lean-seated Torso,  life  size,  and  Avorthy  of  rivalling 
that  of  the  Belvedere,  and  a  terra-cotta  bas-relief  of 
naked,  running  boys  armed  Avith  slings,  the  only 
known  representation  of  the  Lupercalia.  Discovered 
in  1869,  the  last  two  pieces  remained  at  Rome,  as 
well  as  several   small  figures  in  bronze,  bits  of  rare 

*"....  after  the  occurrences  of  1870  Italy  bought  the  Pala- 
tine from  the  Emperor  Napoleon  III.,  while  he  was  still  con- 
fined in  Germany." — Promenades  Archeologiques  par  Gaston 
Boissier. 

19 


290  ROME. 

marble,  trinkets,  and  a  child  in  a  colossal  hand.  Four 
other  pieces  were  sent  to  Paris  and  given  by  the  Em- 
peror to  the  Louvre,  Avhere  three  of  them  were  placed 
on  exhibition:  a  head  of  Julia,  the  daughter  of  Augus- 
tus I  a  head  of  Flavia  Domitilla,  the  only  portrait 
that  Ave  possess  of  the  mother  of  Titus ;  and  a  Cupid 
which,  though  Greek,  was  banished,  without  any 
mark  to  indicate  its  origin,  to  the  entrance  to  the 
Assyrian  antiquities,  where  nobody  would  ever  think 
of  seeking  it. 

As  for  the  fourth  fragment,  the  most  precious  of 
all,  inasmuch  as  the  experts  of  Rome  and  Paris  did 
not  hesitate  to  recognize  in  it  the  original  of  the 
Fauns  derived  from  that  of  Praxiteles,  the  adminis- 
tration mislaid  it  for  four  years,  even  affirming  in 
writing  that  they  had  never  received  it,  when  I  had 
the  good  fortune  to  find  it  myself  among  the  plaster 
rubbish  of  a  workshop,  all  covered  with  dust.  Only 
the  torso  is  left  of  this  admirable  work,  but  the  free- 
dom of  movement,  the  broad,  soft,  and  full  style  of 
an  adolescent  frame,  reveal  the  work  of  a  master  who, 
the  type  being  established,  can  be  none  other  than 
Praxiteles. 

As  we  saunter  about  through  these  wonderful  ruins 
we  will  find  over  and  over  again  that  the  excavations 
first  conducted  with  such  intelligence  and  care  by 
Cav.  Rosa  reveal  the  existence  of  certain  buildings 
just  where  the  annalists  or  poets  of  antiquity  would 
lead  us  to  expect  them.     Romulus  is  said  to  have  in- 


THE  PALATINE  IX  THE  KIX(iLY  PERIOD.     291 

habited  the  summit  of  the  phiteaii  between  the  peri- 
bohis  of  Jupiter  Propugnator  and  the  spot  where 
Tiberius  afterwards  built  his  palace  ;  Numa,  the  cor- 
ner of  the  Via  Sacra,  towards  the  Temple  of  Vesta : 
Hie  fuit  antiqui  regia  parva  Niomc,  said  Ovid.  The 
Temple  of  the  Penates,  says  Solinus,  under  Helio- 
gabalus,  replaced  on  the  Yelia  (eastern  slope)  the 
dwelling  of  Tullus  Hostilius.  It  is  lower  down  than 
the  Porta  Mugionis,  above  the  Summa  via  Sacra, 
near  the  altar  of  tlie  Lares,  that  Varro  fixes  the 
dwelling  of  Ancus.  Tarquinius  Priscus  installed  him- 
self more  at  the  back,  at  the  Summa  via  Nova.  It 
was  there  that  the  children  of  Ancus  had  him  slain 
by  shepherds ;  you  may  mark  the  spot,  "from  a  high 
window  looking  on  to  the  Via  Nova,  for  the  king  was 
quartered  close  to  Jupiter  Stator."  Tanaquil  ad- 
dressed the  Quirites  and  caused  Servius  to  be  pro- 
claimed king.  The  site  of  the  temple  was  restored 
by  Rosa,  as  well  as  that  of  the  Porta  Mugionis  indi- 
cated by  Solinus. 

When  the  Republic  had  fastened  upon  the  nation 
the  yoke  of  a  rapacious  aristocracy,  persons  of  mark 
who  were  rich  enough  to  pay  for  the  usurpation  of 
authority  sought  a  residence  on  the  Palatine.  There 
dwelt,  besides  the  chief  dictators,  the  Gracchi,  Catid- 
lus,  Flaccus,  Hortensius,  Sulla,  and  even  Catiline,  in 
the  neighboi'hood  of  Marcus  Tidlius.  This  last  built 
facing  the  Via  Sacra,  below  the  house  of  Scaurus, 
bought,  as  Asconius  tells  us,  by  the  tribune  Clodius, 


292  EOME. 

against  whom  Cicero  pleaded.  "  I  will  raise  my  roof 
higher,"  wrote  the  great  orator,  "  not  from  contempt 
for  thee,  but  to  veil  from  thee  the  view  of  the  city 
which  thou  wouldst  fain  have  destroyed."  Violets 
grow  there  under  the  rose-trees,  and  the  substruc- 
tions mark  the  compartments  of  a  pai'terre. 

Below  the  roof  of  Cicero,  more  to  the  right,  "  to 
the  east  of  the  sacred  wood  of  Vesta,"  Julius  Caesar 
established  himself  as  soon  as  he  became  pontifex 
Maximus.  Before,  adds  Suetonius,  "  he  had  lived  in 
a  modest  habitation  among  the  plebeians  of  the  Sub- 
urra."  Marcus  Antonius  resided  on  the  Palatine ; 
Claudius  Nero,  the  father  of  Tiberius,  and  Octavius, 
father  of  Augustus,  built  on  the  eastern  and  southern 
slopes  of  Roma  quadrata.  It  was  before  the  house 
of  Octavius  that  a  palm-tree,  springing  up  between 
two  stones,  was  carefully  tended  by  his  son.  The 
Csesars  having  resumed  on  the  Palatine  the  thread 
of  royal  tradition,  Augustus  rebuilt  his  palace,  which 
had  been  destroyed  by  fire,  on  the  summit  of  the 
hill,  and  with  the  aid  of  a  public  subscription,  includ- 
ing within  it  a  temple  of  Apollo,  containing  a  statue 
of  the  god  fifty  feet  high.  He  extended  his  build- 
ings as  fiir  as  the  slope  facing  the  Circus  Maximus  5 
and  to  prolong  them  on  the  east  to  the  intermontiimi, 
he  displaced  a  street,  the  Via  Nova,  without  suspect- 
ing the  cruel  mistakes  to  which  he  would  expose  the 
archaeologists  of  the  future.  In  truth,  if  we  suppose 
that  before  him  this  Via  Nova  passed  between  the 


The  Palace  of  the  Caesars 


PALACE  OF  DOMITIAN.  293 

Velabrum  and  the  Palatine,  the  indications  furnislied 
by  historians  as  to  the  situation  of  the  different  build- 
ings become  unmtelligible.  Cavalier  Rosa  has  shown 
that  previous  to  Augustus  the  Via  Nova  began, 
nearly  at  right  angles  from  the  Summa  via  Sacra,  to 
ascend  the  Palatine,  and  came  down  again  opposite 
the  Aventine,  to  which  it  led.  This  is  why  Ovid, 
mentioning  the  Via  Nova,  and  making  it  turn  the 
Palatine  to  reach  the  Tiber  by  the  Velabrum,  ob- 
serves that  it  is  situated  there  nunc,  which  clearly 
implies  that  it  had  not  always  been  so.  This  once 
recognized,  everything  becomes  clear,  and  scholars 
are  no  longer  reduced  to  the  necessity  of  accusing 
contemporaries  of  being  mistaken.  After  having  de- 
duced from  observation  and  from  ancient  authors  the 
position  of  this  expropriated  street,  Rosa  proceeded 
to  find  it  in  the  depths  of  the  earth. 

Domitian's  magnificent  public  palace  occupied  a 
vast  space  to  the  northwest  of  the  house  of  Augus- 
tus ;  below  the  Flavian  ruins  are  found  galleries  which 
have  been  consolidated  by  filling  them  up  from  top  to 
bottom  with  masses  of  mortar.  The  walls  were  so 
thick,  the  pillars  so  robust,  the  pozzuolana  so  tena- 
cious, that  before  building  they  did  not  take  the 
trouble  to  pull  down.  Each  generation  settled  over 
the  quarters  of  predecessors.  In  the  early  days  of 
the  Empire  the  hill  of  Romulus  shakes  off  the  patri- 
cian residences.  Tiberius,  who  built  between  the 
Auguratorium  and  the  old  house  of  Clodius,  and  who 


294  ROME. 

surrounded  his  edifices  to  east  and  south  with  a  half- 
subterranean  portico,  left  standing  at  the  southeast 
corner  a  private  habitation,  discovered  in  1869  by 
Signor  Rosa,  and  which  is  one  of  the  most  curious 
and  interesting  buildings  of  the  whole  Palatine. 

In  the  course  of  excavating  it,  Rosa  observed,  first 
that  it  was  contiguous  to  the  buildings  of  Tiberius, 
second  that  it  Avas  approached  by  the  same  portico, 
and  finally  that,  as  it  was  placed  on  a  lower  level, 
they  must  have  set  up  some  steps  in  order  to  go  down 
into  it.  These  circumstances  showed  that  it  belonged 
to  the  successor  of  Augustus,  and  was  older  than  the 
palace ;  for  they  would  not  have  erected  it  lower  down. 
Other  indications  pointed  to  its  having  been  the  resi- 
dence of  Claudius  Nero,  the  first  husband  of  Livia. 
At  the  beginning  of  1870,  however,  a  subterranean 
passage  was  brought  to  light,  round  which,  in  the 
direction  of  the  ancient  palace  of  Augustus,  were  the 
leaden  pipes  that  used  to  bring  water  to  the  so-called 
Domus  Tiberiana.  On  these  pipes  Ave  read  at  regular 
intervals  the  words  IVLIAE  avg.  As  the  name  of  the 
owner  Avas  frequently  inscribed  on  pipes  of  this  kind, 
this  inscription,  as  M.  Leon  Renier  observes,  is  a 
genuine  proof  of  ownership,  and  "  informs  us  that  the 
house  in  question  belonged  to  the  Empress  Livia, 
Julia  Augusta ;  means,  in  fact,  Livia,  Avidow  of 
Augustus."  Augustus  having  prescribed  that  she 
should  take  his  name  Avhen  he  instituted  her  heiress 
to  a  third  of  his  property. 


LIVIA'S  HOUSE.  295 

Livia  Avished  to  be  the  first  priestess  of  her  hus- 
band after  he  was  raised  to  the  rank  of  the  gods. 
This  explains  the  subterranean  passage  which  led 
from  her  house  to  that  of  Augustus ;  she  probably 
had  it  constructed  so  as  to  be  free  to  go  back  and 
forth,  without  passing  through  the  public  street,  to 
fulfil  the  ministrations  of  her  office.  This  passage  is 
now  interrupted  at  its  junction  with  the  ivdes  piihUccej 
erected  in  the  reign  of  Domitian.  But  shortly  before 
arriving  at  these  (vdes,  we  observe  that  it  branches  off 
to  the  right,  an  arrangement  probably  made  in  order 
to  get  around  them. 

The  exhumation  of  a  Roman  dwelling-house  of  the 
time  of  Augustus,  the  date  of  which  is  known,  is  of 
itself  of  the  utmost  interest.  And  Avhen  we  add  that 
the  residence  of  Livia  contains  the  finest  and  most 
ancient  pictures  bequeathed  to  us  from  such  distant 
ages,  the  reader  will  hardly  reproach  us  for  having 
devoted  so  much  space  to  its  identification  before  pro- 
ceeding to  describe  it.*  Approaching  by  the  south 
side  of  the  Cryptoporticus  of  Tiberius,  and  descend- 
ing four  steps,  we  reach  a  vestibule  opening  on  to  the 
Atrium  in  which  are  the  altars  of  the  Lares  covered 
over  Avith  minium,  as  well  as  their  foundations. 
Before  us  is  the  Tablinum  (chambers  of  honor),  in 
which  the  master  of  the  house  kept  his  fiimily  ar- 
chives and  received  his  guests  ;  and  on  our  right  the 

*  Lanciani,  however,  identifies  it  with  the  house  of  German- 
icus,  to  which  the  murderers  of  Caligula  escaped. 


296  KOME. 

Triclinium.  These  porticoes  form  four  apartments, 
the  only  ones  decorated ;  which  we  shall  return  to 
presently.  At  the  back  of  the  Tablinum,  which  ad- 
joins chambers  belonging  to  the  pi'ivate  living-place 
(Cubicula)j  is  situated  the  Peristylum,  in  the  middle 
of  which  two  flights  of  stairs  led  up  to  the  stories 
where  guests  never  entered.  Of  these  quarters  there 
remain  thirteen  chambers  without  any  ornament,  faced 
with  a  brown  pigment.  They  had  outlets  both  on  the 
peristyle  and  on  a  long  corridor  {Fauces)  which,  con- 
structed between  the  Tablinum  and  the  Triclinium, 
and  traversing  the  whole  extent  of  the  buildings,  fur- 
nished an  approach  both  right  and  left  to  the  apart- 
ments on  the  ground-floor.  These  comprise  two  bath- 
chambers,  narrow  and  dark  as  they  are  described  by 
Seneca,  until  Maecenas  had,  according  to  Dionysius 
of  Halicarnassus,  set  up  the  first  Caldarium  that  the 
Romans  ever  saw.  The  walls  of  these  baths  are  of 
opus  reticularium,  a  system  in  use  under  Augustus ; 
and  to  make  up  for  the  absence  of  the  Caldarium, 
they  constructed  in  one  of  the  cabinets  a  sort  of 
stove  {Hypocaustum).  Beyond  the  Balnea,  and  open- 
ing on  a  street  of  which  they  have  exhumed  the 
pavement  and  the  causeways — a  road  contrived  be- 
tween the  house  and  the  oflfices  of  the  Temple  of 
Jupiter  Victor — two  shops,  let  to  merchants,  had  been 
thriftily  contrived  at  the  corner  of  Livia's  casa  ;  they 
have  no  communication  with  the  interior  of  the  house. 
Let  us  now  proceed  to  the  most  interesting  part,  the 


PAI>"TINGS  IN  LIVIA'S  HOUSE.  297 

painted  chambers  opening  on  to  the  Atrium.  Thej 
are  not  very  large ;  are  greater  in  depth  than  in 
breadth,  and  tlie  height  of  the  walls  does  not  exceed 
four  metres.  The  decorations  are  distributed  in 
panels  separated  by  figured  columns  of  which  the 
entablatures  bear  cornices  and  rest  on  stylobates,  also 
painted. 

In  the  Triclinium  we  observe  large  transparent 
Paterse,  filled  with  fruit  piled  up  pyramidally — copies 
of  the  vessels  in  Avhich  fruits  were  presented  at  their 
banquets.  One  of  the  panels  contains  a  fanciful 
landscape  in  which  trees,  terraces  adorned  Avith 
statues,  bridges  thrown  out  into  space,  rockeries,  and 
flowing  waters  make  up  a  site  that  would  delight  a 
Chinese  :  in  the  foreground  three  ducks  are  coming 
out  of  an  aquatic  grotto,  leaving  long  furrows  in  the 
water.  Animals  run  along  the  cornice.  The  bottom 
of  the  room  is  enlivened  by  another  landscape,  in  the 
midst  of  Avhich  a  pillar  supporting  a  Greek  vessel 
rises  out  of  the  verdure,  Avhile  to  right  and  left 
winged  griffins  follow  one  another  on  a  wainscoting. 
The  Tablinum  and  its  two  Alse  are  treated  pretty 
nearly  in  the  same  way,  but  with  more  ingenuity. 
At  the  bottom  and  on  the  sides  of  the  left  wing,  at 
the  entrance  to  which  are  some  fragments  of  a  mosaic 
pavement  that  Livia  once  trod,  the  panels  are  sur- 
mounted by  a  series  of  cartouches,  on  Avhich  are 
Genii  in  pairs  with  wings  of  blue,  green,  and  rose- 
color,  recalling  some  of  the  small  figures  of  Raphael  j 


298  KOME. 

they  sport  too  among  the  arabesques  •  moiildmgs, 
griffins,  lotus  flowers,  and  garlands  of  leaves  com- 
plete the  decoration,  which  is  rich,  bold  and  har- 
monious. 

In  the  right  wing  the  panels  are  enriched  with 
thick  garlands  of  flowers  and  fruits  succeeding  one 
another  in  festoons  and  bound  with  ribands.  On  a 
band  above  these  compartments,  and  under  a  frieze 
of  dark  yellow,  defiles  a  curious  procession  of  tiny 
figures,  such  as  are  to  be  seen  in  the  Egyptian  hy- 
pogea ;  they  represent  scenes  borrowed  from  the 
daily  life  of  the  streets.  A  consul,  escorted  by  lictors 
without  arms  and  preceded  by  an  accensus,  is  attend- 
ing to  his  private  busl>iess ;  matrons  go  to  the  neigh- 
boring temple  ;  others  along  the  Appian  Way  visit 
the  tombs  and  carry  offerings  to  the  altars  ;  women 
of  the  people  go  by  with  their  baskets  to  market ; 
lawyers  make  their  way  to  the  Forum  the  outlines 
of  which  are  seen  in  the  distance  ;  merchants  lead 
their  camels  laden  with  wares ;  the  freedmen  go 
about  their  affairs,  hunters  are  seen  returning  to 
town,  a  fisherman  spreads  his  nets.  Nothing  could  be 
more  lively  than  these  revelations  of  popular  habits 
at  the  end  of  the  Republic. 

But  it  is  in  the  central  compartment  of  the  Tab- 
linum  that  we  find  the  principal  subjects.  In  an 
elaborate  architectural  frame-Avork  is  a  succession  of 
well-preserved  paintings.  The  finest  in  point  of  style 
represents,  seated  at  the  foot  of  a  column,  and  watched 


10  AND  HERMES.  299 

by  Argus,  lo,  the  daughter  of  Inachus,  whom  Hermes 
is  about  to  deliver.  The  Hermes  and  Argus  are 
naked  and  of  superb  design )  the  iirst  has  his  name 
inscribed  at  his  feet.  The  identity  of  Argus  has 
been  demonstrated  by  two  paintings  at  Pompeii, 
nearly  resembling  one  another  and  described  by  M. 
Helbig,  as  well  as  by  an  intaglio  representing  that 
personage  in  the  same  attitude  ;  Argus  wears  on  his 
bent  knee  a  violet  chlamys  covered  by  the  skin  of 
some  beast.  "  It  refers,"  says  M.  Perrot,  "  to  a 
characteristic  point  in  the  legend  of  the  hero,  for,  ac- 
cording to  Apollodorus,  Argus  slew  a  wild  bull  who 
was  laying  Arcadia  Avaste,  and  threw  the  spoils  of  it 
over  his  shoulder."  This  is  again  a  convincing  sign. 
The  figure  has  been  copied  from  Greek  cameos,  and, 
a  singular  thing,  one  of  these  cameos  was  studied 
nineteen  centuries  after  by  Ingres,  who  from  this  Ar- 
gus on  the  watch  drew  his  Oedipus.  The  identity  is 
complete. 

On  the  walls  of  the  same  chamber  two  cartouches 
represent,  one  the  sacrifice  of  a  lamb,  the  other  an  in- 
cantation. In  the  first  the  people,  the  draperies,  the 
attitude  of  the  priestess,  as  she  pours  Avater  from  an 
amphora,  mark  the  work  of  a  Greek  artist ;  the  head 
and  Roman  coiffure  of  the  matron,  seated  and  hold- 
ing a  fan,  denote  by  contrast  that  this  figure  is  a  por- 
trait. A  more  free  and  less  hieratic  composition 
represents  a  lady  and  her  attendant ;  the  latter  stands 
upright,  while  the  other,  who  is  seated,  holds  Si,  pyxis 


300  KOME. 

on  her  knee.  Before  a  tripod  on  which  flames  sparkle, 
rises,  solemn  and  draped  from  head  to  foot,  the  sorcer- 
ess, whom  the  mistress  of  the  house  watches  with  at- 
tentive gaze.  The  philtre  box  in  the  hands  of  the 
latter,  her  striking  attitude,  her  diadem,  the  girdle  or 
baldric  Avhich  the  sorceress  presents,  marks  which  an- 
swer to  a  passage  of  the  Hippolytus  of  Euripides, 
have  led  Cavalier  Rosa  to  suppose  that  Phsedra  is 
the  principal  figure  of  this  charming  and  expressive 
composition. 

At  the  back  of  the  apartment  is  a  picture  of  Gala- 
tea on  the  Avaves,  in  wdiich  two  other  Nereids  swim. 
Elegant  and  supple,  the  nymph  turns  disdainfully 
round,  from  the  back  of  the  snorting  sea-horse  who 
bears  her  swiftly  across  the  Avaters  :  behind  a  rock 
rises  the  colossal  bust  of  Polyphemus,  with  an  Eros 
perched  upon  his  shoulder. 

Between  this  painting  and  that  of  lo,  is  a  subject 
that  is  the  only  representation  w^e  have  of  the  exter- 
nal aspect  of  bourgeois  dwellings  of  the  seventh  cen- 
tury of  Rome.  Two  houses  open  on  the  street  by 
small  square  doors ;  the  upper  stories,  pierced  with 
small  windows,  recede,  leaving  projecting  terraces, 
one  of  Avhich  forms  a  covered  gallery  supported  on 
two  pillars ;  a  cordon  divides  the  first  floor  from  the 
second.  From  one  of  the  windows  and  on  the  bal- 
conies five  persons  watch  a  becomingly  draped  lady, 
who,  fanning  herself  wdth  a  flahellnm,  has  just  gone 
out,  followed  by  a  little  girl. 


The  House  of  Livia 


^^^ 


PAINTINGS  IN  LI  VIA' S  HOUSE.  301 

These  paintings  are  of  rare  delicacy,  and  have 
preserved  their  freshness  Avonderfully.  PHny  (xxxv. 
10)  describing  the  fantastic  subjects  represented  by 
an  artist  named  Tadio  or  Ludio — who  must  have 
been  the  first  before  the  time  of  Augustus  to  do  this 
kind  of  decoration — might  have  been  writing  of  the 
house  of  Livia.  He  describes^  after  Yitruvius,  the 
manner  in  which  the  wall  was  prepared  and  polished, 
as  well  as  the  varnish  with  which  the  Avork  was 
covered,  to  bring  out  the  colors  and  assure  their  per- 
manence. Both  add  that  these  processes,  which  were 
devised  by  Apelles,  fell  into  disuse  in  the  time  of 
Augustus.  Now  these  walls  have  been  prepared  just 
in  this  way  ;  the  paintings  are  on  waxed  surfaces, 
and  the  encaustic  described  by  Vitruvius  still  covers 
the  best-preserved  portions.  Moreover,  Cavalier 
Rosa,  having  manufactured  the  varnish  in  question 
after  the  old  recipe,  applied  it  to  these  rooms  with 
the  result  that  the  paintings  ceasing  to  peel  off  re- 
covered all  their  brightness. 

Such,  then,  are  these  nearly  unique  examples  of  an 
early  school  of  art  imported  from  Greece,  and  de- 
scribed by  authors  of  the  first  century.  If  I  add  that 
these  works,  existing  in  the  only  ancient  house  of 
which  Ave  know  both  the  exact  date  and  the  owner, 
are  superior  to  all  that  Pompeii  has  bequeathed  to  us, 
I  shall  be  pardoned  for  having  described  them  in  such 
detail. 

Returning  to  the  ruins  of  the  palace  of  Tiberius, 


302  EOME. 

continued  on  a  vaster  scale  by  his  successor  as  far  as 
the  extremity  of  the  Palatine,  we  find  some  guard- 
houses, where  to  pass  the  time  the  soldiers  used  to 
scribble  mottoes  and  jests  on  the  walls,  sometimes 
with  their  signatures,  and  whole  sentences  that  are 
easily  deciphered.  Among  them  was  found  a  carica- 
ture of  Nero ;  a  small  narrow  brow  with  a  garland, 
and  a  chin  tufted  with  a  growing  beard ;  this  profile 
is  very  lifelike.  The  excavations  around  the  modest 
house  of  Livia  have  brought  to  light  a  marble  bust  of 
the  same  emperor,  the  only  one  which  may  be  as- 
signed with  certainty  to  the  time  when  he  lived. 

Caligula  built  his  gigantic  palaces  over  the  Clivus 
Victorise  and  the  Porta  Romana,  Avhich  Romidus  had 
opened  at  the  western  corner  of  his  wall  towards  the 
Forum.  In  order  to  unite  the  Palatine  with  the 
Capitol,  the  successor  of  Tiberius  threw  across  the 
Velabrum  that  immense  bridge  whose  abutment  has 
been  brought  to  light,  and  which  was  demolished  by 
Claudius.  It  was  in  clearing  out  the  accumidations 
of  this  mountain  erected  by  the  hand  of  man,  that 
Rosa,  sustaining  galleries  and  vaultings  with  as  much 
art  as  economy,  succeeded  in  extricating  from  a  mass 
of  debris  the  most  ancient  portions  of  the  imperial 
residence  ;  bas-reliefs,  a  few  cartouches  of  stucco  rep- 
resenting wanton  scenes,  corridors  terminating  in 
small  chambers,  enable  us  to  recognize  the  haunts, 
out  of  which,  according  to  Suetonius,  the  emperor 
raised  a  revenue  and  where  the  senators   made  it  a 


CALiaULA'S  PALACE.  303 

duty  to  degrade  themselves  in  order  to  please  Caesar. 
As  to  the  Argiletum,  Suetonius  states  that  Caligula 
prolonged  his  palaces  towards  the  Forum  as  far  as 
the  Temple  of  Castor,  to  which  he  made  a  vestibule, 
where  he  exhibited  himself  as  an  object  of  public 
adoration,  under  the  title  of  Jupiter  Latinus.  On  the 
Palatine  itself,  an  altar  to  his  personal  divinity  was 
served  by  Flamens,  and  before  his  golden  statue, 
which  was  every  day  decked  in  garments  like  those 
which  he  Avore  himself  on  that  day,  his  priests  immo- 
lated flamingoes,  peacocks,  black  geese,  and  pheas- 
ants. Round  the  long  galleries  of  Tiberius,  which 
Cavalier  Rosa  restored  to  us,  and  whose  ruins  our  ey  es 
measure  with  amazement,  Caligula  during  his  long 
fits  of  sleeplessness  used  to  roam  alone,  in  close  com- 
panionship Avith  the  inmiortals.  He  was  heard  scold- 
ing Jupiter  and  threatening  to  send  him  back  to 
Greece,  and  on  the  nights  Avhen  the  star  of  Diana 
shone  in  a  clear  sky,  he  invited  the  goddess  to  descend 
and  give  herself  to  him. 

After  the  great  fire  of  the  year  G4,  described  by 
Tacitus,  had  cleared  the  valley  separating  the  Pala- 
tine from  the  Esquiline,  Nero  built  there  on  plans  of 
such  immensity,  that  his  palace  reached  nearly  as  far 
as  the  ancient  residence  of  Maecenas.  Otho  installed 
himself  in  a  section  of  the  palaces  of  Tiberius,  that 
Messalina  and  Claudius  had  once  inhabited.  Vespa- 
sian, Titus,  Domitian,  and  their  successors,  must  have 
enlarged  their  dwellings  on  the  side  of  the  Augurato- 


304  ROME. 

rium,  and  continued  the  porticoes,  which  had  then  be- 
come subterranean,  and  from  which  another  gallery 
branches  out.  Covered  with  a  low  vaulted  roof  and 
lighted  from  above,  it  allowed  the  emperors  to  pro- 
ceed, without  being  seen,  from  their  private  dwelling 
to  the  throne-room,  by  penetrating,  at  the  back  of 
the  Tribuna  of  the  basilica,  into  the  palace  appropri- 
ated by  Domitian  for  audiences  and  receptions. 

If,  as  you  descend  from  the  southern  slope,  you 
continue  towards  the  left  by  a  series  of  ruined  edifices, 
you  reach  some  chambers  prepared  under  Septimius 
for  the  instruction  of  the  young  patricians  ;  a  sort  of 
school  for  pages.  Inscriptions  in  cursive  Latin  and 
Greek,  caricatures,  quotations,  signatures  drawn  with 
the  point  of  the  stylus  or  knife,  here  confirm  the  asser- 
tions of  antiquaries.  One  of  these  pieces  of  facetious- 
ness,  which  has  been  placed  in  the  Kircher  Museum, 
proves  in  a  bizarre  way  the  invasion  by  Christianity 
in  the  second  century  of  the  very  palace  of  the  Csesars. 
Some  small  youth,  by  Avay  of  teasing  one  of  his  com- 
rades, sketches  in  the  plaster  a  crucified  ass,  and 
writes  beneath  in  Greek,  "  Alexamenos  adores  his 
god." 

Up  to  the  time  of  Constantino  the  emperors  resided 
for  the  most  part  on  the  royal  hill.  Genseric  en- 
camped there  in  455,  and  carried  away  from  it  the 
spoils  of  the  Temple  of  Jerusalem.  After  him  they 
only  kept  up  in  these  palaces  a  few  apartments  to 
give  shelter  at  long  intervals  to  the  diminished  heads 


THE  REGIA.  305 

of  the  empire.  Heraclius  sojourned  there  m  the 
seventh  century  5  Charles  the  Great  took  possession 
of  it  when  lie  was  proclaimed  Emperor  of  the  West. 
He  closed  the  series  of  the  croAvned  guests  of  the 
Palatine,  a  series  that  in  the  stories  of  the  chroniclers 
opens  with  Romulus,  and  dates  back  in  the  songs  of 
the  poets  as  far  as  King  Evander. 

In  the  public  palace  the  lower  parts  of  most  of  the 
rooms  have  been  brought  to  light :  the  bases  of  the 
columns  still  mark  the  galleries,  the  levelled  soil  is 
the  rough  cast  in  Avhich  the  mosaics  were  laid,  a  few 
scattered  bits  of  which  are  still  left.  Thanks  to  these 
indications,  the  internal  arrangements  are  quite  plain: 
after  the  Portico  comes  the  Tablinum,  a  vast  chamber, 
with  an  apse  at  the  back  of  it  for  the  throne.  Statues 
formerly  adorned  this  reception  hall,  situated  between 
the  basilica  dedicated  to  Jupiter  and  the  chapel  of  the 
Lares.  At  the  lower  end  of  the  Regia  two  doors 
opened  out  on  a  Peristylum,  a  spacious  square  court 
surrounded  with  porticoes,  from  the  sides  of  which 
were  the  approaches  to  some  small  apartments.  Next 
we  come  to  the  Triclinium  {Joris  ccaiafio),  with  a 
nymphseum  opening  from  it  on  the  right.  The  seats 
used  to  describe  an  elongated  oval ;  above  them  a 
sheet  of  water  fell  into  small  basins,  surmounted  by 
rockwork  and  flowers.  In  the  Tribune  of  the  Tri- 
cHnium,  which  was  surrounded  by  columns  projecting 
from  broad  pilasters,  a  pavement  of  mosaic  marks  the 
spot  where   the  masters  of  the  world  used  to  feast. 

20 


306  ROME. 

Beyond  is  a  second  portico  built  on  foundations  of  the 
date  of  the  liepubUc,  and  further  on  the  Library, 
reconstructed  on  the  site  of  the  two  founded  by 
Augustus — one  for  Greek  books,  the  other  for 
Latin.  Contiguous  to  it  was  the  Academia,  a  room 
for  readings  and  dissertations  upon  the  poets  and 
phiIosoj)hy  ;  it  was  separated  from  the  Libreria,  so 
that  the  noise  might  not  disturb  the  readers ;  and 
placed  next  to  it  so  as  to  have  the  documents  close 
at  hand. 

Beyond  this  hall  Ave  overlook  the  narrow  valley  of 
the  Circus  Maximus.  Close  by  on  the  right  is  the 
peribolus,  with  three  steps  of  the  Temple  of  Jupiter 
Victor,  erected  by  Q.  Fabius  Maximus ;  the  Csesars 
respected  it.  On  the  platform  are  still  to  be  seen 
some  pillars  of  this  Etruscan  building,  which  was  found 
by  Cavalier  Rosa  on  the  ides  of  April,  the  anniver- 
sary of  the  day  on  which  Ovid  informs  us  that  it  was 
dedicated.  From  the  Triclinium,  surrounded  on  every 
hand  by  the  ruins  of  ancient  Rome,  beyond  which 
rise  the  buildings  of  the  modern  city,  the  view  is 
such  as  could  only  be  furnished  by  a  capital  two 
thousand  six  hundred  years  old.  At  the  extremity 
of  the  Triclinium  some  steps,  penetrating  through 
two  series  of  crypts,  lead  to  an  underground  Tab- 
linum.  Windows  and  doors  have  been  Availed  up  in 
these  now-subterranean  chambers,  in  one  of  Avhich  is 
preserved  an  archivolt  as  well  as  an  arch,  decorated 
with  paintings  finely  toviched   on   clear   grounds ;  s. 


THE  CIRCUS  MAXIMUS.  307 

number  of  figures  of  divinities,  a  Sacrilice  to  the 
Lares,  and,  in  the  neighboring  room,  two  personages 
in  fresco,  of  a  particuLarly  fine  style.  Beneath  the 
ruins  of  this  profound  cavern  may  be  discerned  other 
crypts  profounder  still. 

In  our  modern  language  we  have  come  to  confound 
circuses  with  amphitheatres.  Among  the  Romans 
the  circus  was  not  a  round  building,  but  a  very  elon- 
gated enclosure,  containing  a  course  for  chariots,  men, 
and  horses  between  terraces  covered  with  seats,  and 
nearly  parallel  to  one  another.  A  low  wall,  the 
spina,  ran  down  the  centre,  at  one  end  of  which  were 
the  Carceres,  the  stalls  from  which  the  horses  and 
chariots  shot  forth  ;  thirteen  in  number,  the  central 
one  covered  with  an  arch  only  being  used  for  the 
entry  of  festal  processions.  At  each  end  of  the  Car- 
ceres  rose  towers,  on  which  they  stationed  fifes, 
drums,  and  trumpets,  to  animate  the  horses  by  their 
fanfares.  Under  a  small  portico  the  charioteers  made 
ready  for  the  race,  divided  by  their  colors  into  four 
factions^  Albata,  Russata,  Prasina,  Yeneta  (white, 
red,  green,  and  azure).  Above  the  Carceres,  and 
between  the  towers,  on  the  terrace  of  the  Oppidum, 
gathered  the  privileged  amateurs,  betting-men,  and 
owners. 

At  a  given  signal  the  barriers  were  lowered,  and 
the  twelve  cars  came  forth,  one  of  each  color  in  each 
of  the  four  rows,  and  filed  before  the  Podium,  Avhich 
supported  the  tiers  separated  by  their  Pracinctiones. 


308  KOME. 

First  the  competing  rivals  passed  in  front  of  the  lower 
Pulvinar,  a  projecting  box  appropriated  to  the  aidiles^ 
censors,  and  praetors, — in  other  words,  to  the  civic 
authorities.  It  was  under  the  censors  Flaccus  and 
Posthumius  Albinus,  one  hundred  and  seventy-three 
years  before  our  era,  that  boxes  were  for  the  first 
time  placed  at  the  disposal  of  these  magistrates.  As 
for  the  senators,  up  to  the  time  of  Scipio  Africanus 
they  remained  mixed  up  with  the  croAvd ;  for  by 
separating  them  from  the  plebs  at  the  scenic  repre- 
sentations of  the  Megalesia,  Scipio  raised  a  great 
clamor.  The  senatorial  box  and  its  neighbor,  which 
divided  the  right  side  into  two  equal  portions,  almost 
faced  another  and  loftier  Pulvinar,  where,  as  the 
word  shows,  the  seats  were  covered  with  cushions  : 
this,  communicating  wath  the  Regia  of  the  Palatine, 
was  reserved  for  the  emperor  and  the  court.  Four 
doors  gave  access  to  the  arena — two  at  the  sides  of 
the  towers  of  the  Oppidum,  a  third  in  front  of  the 
first  goal,  the  fourth  at  the  extremity  of  the  circus. 
The  goals  were  conical,  and  were  surmounted  by 
effffs,  in  honor  of  the  Dioscuri,  whom  Leda  hatched 
like  swans.  On  the  pedestals  were  bas-reliefs  rep- 
resenting the  games.  Seven  movable  eggs  of  gilded 
wood  were  also  arranged  conspicuously,  between  the 
goals ;  they  served  to  mark  the  progress  of  the  race, 
seven  indicating  that  the  whole  course  had  been  run. 
The  circuses  were  not  used  merely  for  chariot  and 
horse  races  5  wrestling,  boxing,  foot  races,  and  wild 


THE  CIRCUS  MAXIMUS.  309 

animal  hunts  varied  the  spectacles.  It  was  here  that 
the  two  obelisks  were  found  that  stand,  one  in  the 
Piazza  Del  Popolo  and  the  other  in  front  of  S.  John 
Lateran. 


310  ROME. 


CHAPTER    XV. 

After  spending  soi«e  months  in  Rome,  incessantly 
occupied  with  ruins,  basilicas,  galleries,  libraries,  and 
buildings  of  every  description,  one  is  suddenly  seized 
v.'ith  a  desire  to  be  among  fields  and  woods ;  one 
morning  accordingly  we  withdrew  to  Albano  and  the 
forests  and  lakes  of  the  Alban  HiHs.  Our  first  Avalk 
was  along  the  charming  road  called  La  Galleria,  to 
Castel  Gandolfo. 

As  in  and  about  Rome,  this  district  and  its  hamlets 
are  full  of  historic  memories,  of  monuments,  of  mys- 
teries unfathomable,  solitudes,  where  the  sovereign 
aristocracy  of  the  world  concealed  its  innermost  life. 
These  country  scenes,  that  nature  has  clothed  in 
supreme  beauty,  have  not  been  disfigured  by  the 
hand  of  modern  times ;  as  we  go  through  them, 
we  nivoluntarily  smile  at  their  striking  resemblance 
to  the  pictures  that  the  Latin  poets  have  drawn  of 
them. 

In  the  early  morning  we  again  saw  from  another 
point,  and  in  the  light  of  a  difi'erent  hour,  the  pro- 
found hollow  of  the  Lake  of  Albano.  From  the  ter- 
race of  the  Capuchins,  the  view  is  wider  and  the 
solitude  more  complete,  and  you  can  observe  geologi- 


The  Campagna 


ALBANO.  311 

cally  the  bizarre  configuration  of  a  region  that  vol- 
canoes have  overrun  twice  or  thrice. 

Through  umbrageous  avenues,  through  forests  that 
nymphs  might  long  for,  through  the  towns  of  Gen- 
zano  and  Ariccia,  expressly  planned  for  painters,  we 
reached  the  Villa  Cesarini,  at  the  other  extremity  of 
a  woody  plateau  which  on  one  side  envelops  the  Lake 
of  Albano  and  on  the  other  the  Lake  of  Nemi.  Like 
the  former,  the  Lake  of  Nemi  lies  in  an  extinct  crater; 
on  its  banks  are  pasture  lands,  and  a  village  of  quaint 
aspect.  A  diadem  of  forest  crowns  the  neighboring 
heights ;  its  bare  branches  sketching  a  dark  fringe 
against  the  hoar-frost  of  Monte  Cavo,  on  the  summit 
of  which  Virgil  makes  Juno  descend,  to  watch  the 
contests  of  j3^neas  with  Turnus.  To  the  right  is  the 
peak  of  Monte  Jove,  with  its  tufted  grove,  which  re- 
places a  destroyed  temple  ;  below  us,  at  a  formidable 
depth,  slumbers  the  lake.  We  make  our  way  do^vTi 
by  charming  paths,  where  one  has  the  curious  sensa- 
tion of  leaning,  without  danger,  over  an  abyss.  All 
along  this  erase  down  to  the  very  water's  edge  it  is 
nothing  but  turf  sprinkled  with  rocks,  tufts  of  laurus- 
tinus,  and  the  flowering  wild  cherry  ;  the  ground  is 
crowded  with  blue  and  violet  hyacinths,  camomile, 
and  crocuses  of  many  hues.  Olive,  cactus,  aloe,  date, 
— green  trees  made  dark  in  the  distance  by  contrast 
with  the  snows, — winter  married  to  spring,  Switzer- 
land to  Magna  Gr^ecia. 

The  way  back  is  shortened  by  crossing  three  via- 


312  KOME. 

ducts,  erected  by  the  popes.  We  had  reached  Gen- 
zano  by  following  the  old  Via  Appia,  which  further 
on  crosses  the  country  of  the  Volsci  to  Anxur ;  here 
is  the  bridge  of  Gregory  XVI.  Pius  IX.  threw  via- 
ducts over  tAvo  abysses,  that  of  Ariccia  being  so  deep, 
that  it  required  three  superimposed  ranges  of  arches, 
and  is  worthy  to  be  compared  with  the  achievements 
of  the  ancients.  The  splendor  of  the  site  enhances 
the  lofty  style  of  the  erection.  Near  the  entrance  to 
Albano  is  a  pyramid,  flanked  at  the  corners  by  cones ; 
for  the  erudite  of  the  village  it  is  the  tomb  of  Aruns. 
"  At  any  rate  it  is  the  tomb  of  some  one,"  as  Brid'oi- 
son  would  say.  On  the  new  Via  Appia,  Pius  IX. 
marked  his  sixteenth  and  seventeenth  mile.  He  in- 
scribed them  on  mehc  of  antique  shape,  Avith  an  anti- 
quarian ambition  that  one  is  glad  to  honor. 

On  the  morroAv  we  wished  to  employ  the  day  in 
going  round  the  lake  through  the  woods,  in  identify- 
ing the  ancient  via  triumplialis  of  the  Alban  Mount, 
and  in  ascending  the  deserted  heights  of  Monte  Cavo, 
as  far  as  Rocca  di  Papa,  a  lofty  hamlet  to  which  the 
landscape-painter  enticed  us. 

At  the  Madonna  del  Tuffo  (a  votive  chapel  com- 
memorating the  miraculous  escape  of  two  cavaliers 
from  a  falling  rock)  there  is  a  fine  view  ;  a  small  con- 
vent of  Passionists  replaces  the  Temple  of  Jupiter 
Latialis,  where  in  old  times  the  Feriae  Latinse  were 
celebrated.  The  sun  having  partially  cleared  away 
the  mist  we  perceived  the  enormous  dome  of  S.  Peter's 


ROCCA  DI  PAPA.   '  313 

rising  up  with  its  Vatican  pedestals  :  of  the  whole 
eternal  city,  at  that  distance  this  was  the  only  building 
we  could  distinguish  :  the  rest  was  dissolved  in  the 
soft  undidations  of  the  Etruscan  Hills.  We  still  kept 
mounting,  and  the  snow,  which  had  begun  by  tracing 
tiny  embroideries  in  the  gi'ass  of  the  underwood, 
gradually  spread  until  Avhen  we  reached  the  cause- 
w^ay,  that  forms  the  lower  approach  to  the  town,  it 
lay  about  us  in  a  white  sheet.  From  this  point,  the 
lake  is  a  vessel  only  half  full ;  beyond  its  highest 
brink  is  seen  the  sheet  of  the  Pontine  marshes  ex- 
tending to  the  sea,  Avhich  spreads  white  sails  to  the 
sky. 

Rocca  di  Papa  looks  like  a  pyramid  faced  with 
brown  houses,  and  terminated  on  the  summit  by  a 
ruined  fort ;  you  climb  up  through  a  labyrinth  of 
alleys  by  forty  steps.  While  the  goats  crowd  round 
the  hovels,  the  men  play  at  mora  ;  the  sound  of  sing- 
ing comes  out  of  the  houses  5  girls,  in  holiday  attire, 
move  back  and  forth  to  the  fountain,  and  from  house 
to  house,  in  sportive  bands,  many  of  them  so  hand- 
some as  to  provoke  an  exclamation  of  surprise  ;  some 
of  them  carry  the  water  on  their  heads  in  handsome 
copper  amphora,  which  we  recognize  from  the  Etrus- 
can bas-reliefs  and  the  paintings  of  Pompeii.  In  the 
midst  of  all  this  noise,  and  the  trampling  feet  which 
churn  the  snow  to  a  dark  brown  color,  the  children 
ask  for  baiocchi  ;  the  men  bid  you  good  even  in 
rough   tones ;  the  w^omen   turn    upon  you  a  serious 


314  EOME. 

eye,  and  as  soon  as  you  have  passed  a  group,  the 
joyous  clamor  is  resumed  behind  you. 

We  offered  the  guide  refreshments,  but  he  declined; 
he  even  dissuaded  us  from  stopping  because  it  was 
late,  and  it  were  better  not  to  be  overtaken  by  night 
too  far  from  Albano.  This  prudence  struck  me  as 
sensible  enough  5  we  had  met  in  the  forest  some  wood- 
cutters, whose  guns  had  made  me  a  little  suspicious, 
because  after  all  one  does  not  usually  fell  trees  with 
a  gun.  We  made  therefore  a  hasty  survey  of  Rocca 
di  Papa,  an  Alpine  village  from  which,  standing  in 
the  snow,  eighty  kilometres  of  olive-trees  can  be  seen. 
But  with  its  striking  style,  its  concentric  alleys,  its  old 
and  low  gateways,  and  its  roofs  pointed  as  in  the 
north,  it  left  on  me  a  very  vivid  impression. 

From  Albano  to  Frascati  across  the  mountains,  the 
journey  even  in  winter  is  varied  and  interesting. 
On  the  slope  of  Palazzuolo  we  saw  the  exact  position 
of  Alba  Longa,  built  by  the  son  of  ^neas,  and  which 
long  after  its  destruction  by  Tullus  Hostilius,  be- 
queathed its  name  to  the  hamlet  formed  round  an  en- 
trenched camp,  established  to  protect  the  Appian  Way 
at  the  time  of  the  second  Carthaginian  invasion. 
These  recollections  brought  us  to  the  entrance  to 
Marino,  by  the  valley  in  which  still  runs  the  spring 
of  the  goddess  Ferentina,  the  Venus  Genitrix  of  the 
old  Latins  ;  it  was  there,  before  the  foundation  of 
Rome,  that  assembled,  under  the  presidency  of  Alba, 
the  representatives  of  the  thirty  cities  of  which  the 


MAEINO.  315 

Latin  confederation  was  composed.  Tarquin  caused 
Herdonius  to  be  drowned  in  those  waters  to  whicli  we 
saw  two  she-goats  going  to  drink,  pensively  tended 
by  a  girl  between  thirteen  and  fourteen.  She  did 
not  raise  her  pretty  head  at  our  approach,  bent  over 
the  spindle  which  her  fingers  were  twisting ;  you 
might  have  taken  her  for  a  little  princess  playing  at 
being  shepherdess. 

Pius  IX.  erected  a  viaduct  which  shortens  the  as- 
cent to  the  feudal  hamlet  of  the  Colonna. 

Below  a  chapel,  the  lower  side  of  which  borders  on 
a  wide,  steep  street,  rises  a  large  palace,  whicli  the 
Colonna  had  built  by  Turkish  prisoners  after  the  bat- 
tle of  Lepanto.  From  the  terrace  in  front  of  the 
church  Ave  gazed  upon  a  sweet  spring  landscape.  If 
you  choose  to  linger  at  Marino,  you  will  find  there 
other  palaces,  Avith  paintings  and  bas-reliefs,  and 
ruins  with  inscriptions  to  decipher. 

After  leaving  Marino  we  ascended  one  of  the  slopes 
of  the  valley,  which  is  cut  into  tiers  by  the  successive 
currents  of  lava.  Shortly  beyond  an  elevation  clad 
with  olives,  Grotta  Ferrata  revealed  itself,  some  for- 
tified buildings  from  whose  midst  arose  the  pyramidal 
fagade  of  a  church  masked  in  theatrical  Gothic,  and 
its  large  belfry  of  rose-colored  brick.  These  objects 
bathed  in  cold  sunlight  stood  out  brightly  against  the 
sombre  and  threatening  sky.  Grotta  Ferrata  is  only 
an  abbey  with  its  dependencies — a  crenellated  abbey 
of  most  feudal  and  most  cenobitic  appearance. 


316  EOME. 

A  postern  introduces  you  into  the  surviving  por- 
tion of  a  Florentine  cloister.  In  the  church  a  charm- 
ing place  to  rest  is  before  four  frescoes  executed  by 
Domenichino  in  his  youth.  Cardinal  Farnese  ordered 
them  just  when  the  artist  was  at  the  age  when  an  ar- 
dent soul  dreams  rather  of  expressing  what  it  has  felt, 
than  of  exhibiting  the  skill  of  a  cunning  craftsman. 
These  works  reproduce  the  life  of  the  founders  of  the 
monastery,  the  monks  S.  Nilus  and  S.  BartholomcAv, 
who  towards  the  year  1000,  fleeing  from  the  Sara- 
cens, came  and  hid  themselves  in  this  solitude.  In 
the  subject  representing  S.  Nilus  received  by  Otto 
III.,  the  prince  as  well  as  the  monks  are  expressive 
figures  with  a  fine  mystic  sentiment.  It  is  here  that 
the  artist  has  placed  the  portraits  of  the  four  leaders 
of  the  second  Bolognese  school — Guercino,  Guide 
Reni,  Annibal  Caracci,  and  the  artist  himself.  No- 
body has  handled  frescoes  with  a  brush  at  once  so 
supple  and  so  rich  as  Zampieri.  S.  Nilus  praying  to 
avert  the  storm — the  Exorcism  of  a  child — the  Monk 
Bartholomew  at  prayer — are  executed  moreover  with 
true  religious  sentiment,  that  is  to  say,  with  sim- 
plicity. 

As  you  begin  to  climb  the  mountain  again,  you  face 
Rocca  di  Papa,  from  which  you  are  separated  by  two 
deep  glens.  The  straight,  sloping  sides  of  Monte 
Cavo  seen  from  here  recall  Vesuvius,  only  the  plume 
of  smoke  is  replaced  by  a  tuft  of  trees. 

As  we  climbed  higher  up  the  mountain   the   air 


TUSCULUM.  317 

became  so  keen  that  the  riders  were  freezing  on  their 
donkeys,  while  the  vegetation  on  the  somewhat  steep 
ascent  before  us  was  sprinkled  with  a  slippery  pow- 
dering of  snow.  On  the  height,  a  columbarium  gave 
notice  of  the  vicinity  of  a  Roman  road,  and  in  fact 
we  came  out  on  the  Via  Tusculana,  which  preserves, 
besides  a  part  of  its  Pelasgic  pavement,  the  remains 
of  its  footways.  The  further  we  advanced,  the  deeper 
grew  the  snow  5  nothing  could  exceed  the  oddity  of 
this  Alpine-like  travel  so  near  to  spots  filled  with 
warm  and  balmy  associations,  while  you  tell  yourself 
with  chattering  teeth  that  you  are  on  your  way  to 
Tusculum, 

No  spot  has  been  more  extolled  for  the  mildness 
of  its  temperature,  sheltered  as  it  is  from  the  cold 
winds  of  the  east  and  north,  than  this  little  town, 
which  was  incorporated  in  the  Roman  State  381  B.C., 
and  which  at  that  epoch  retained  its  walls  and  its 
municipal  independence.  The  flowers  and  trees  of 
Tusculum  were  the  delight  of  Cicero ;  Hortensius 
had  a  house  there,  to  Avliich  he  added  a  chamber  for 
Cydias's  picture  of  the  Argonauts  ;  thither  withdrew 
both  pleasure-seekers  and  sages — and  the  two  were 
often  only  one  in  the  times  of  Augustus.  So  to  sym- 
bolize this  happy  devotion  of  a  town  to  pleasure, 
people  assigned  its  foundation  to  a  son  of  Circe,  the 
sorceress,  by  Ulysses  the  eloquent — to  that  Telegonus 
who,  when  pressed  by  hunger,  slew  his  father  by  mis- 
take in  his  search  for  a  meal. 


318  ROME. 

It  is  a  rare  circumstance  when  visiting  the  ruins 
of  Tusculum  to  wade  through  snow  a  foot  deep ; 
never  in  my  life  have  I  seen  anything  so  kigubrious 
or  so  desperately  deserted  ^  it  produced  the  impres- 
sion of  a  village  at  the  pole,  abandoned  after  the 
country  was  frozen  up.  The  palace  ruins,  discovered 
almost  at  the  summit  of  the  mountain,  where  the  wind 
moves  noiselessly  over  the  bare  ground,  may  date 
back  to  Cicero  as  well  as  to  Tiberius,  that  sombre 
and  skilful  administrator  who  had  three  great  work- 
shops for  landscape-painters — Rhodes,  Tuscidum, 
Caprese.  The  opus  reticularium  is  everywhere  ;  the 
Schola  has  left  circular  traces  :  some  mutilated  stat- 
ues have  been  found,  Avith  which  they  have  decked 
and  supported  the  four  corners  of  a  custodian's 
house,  whom  the  winter  had  put  to  flight — a  build- 
ing crammed  full  of  pieces  of  old  marbles.  The  only 
shelter  we  could  And  from  the  wind  laden  with  snow- 
flakes  was  the  side  of  a  wall.  To  the  left  of  the 
theatre,  at  the  end  of  a  pathway  hidden  by  brush- 
wood, is  a  peperino  fountain.  The  interior  vaulting 
of  this  nympheum,  more  ancient  according  to  some 
audacious  scholars  than  the  invention  of  the  arch,  is 
made  of  superposed  blocks,  which  lean  as  they  ascend, 
and  which  terminate  in  a  culmen  of  upright  stones, 
supported  upon  one  another  to  close  the  pyramid.  It 
is  difficult  to  admit  that  the  work  is  earlier  than  the 
Etruscans  and  goes  back  to  the  Pelasgi,  and  that  in 
the   time  of  the   Tusculans   they  preserved   it  as  a 


TUSCULUM.  319 

curiosity ',  is  it  not  more  probable  that  between 
Tiberius  and  Hadrian  they  amused  themselves  by 
making  a  rustic  fountain  in  imitation  of  the  nymphea 
of  primitive  times  ?  Copies  always  please  ages  of 
refinement. 

The  theatre  of  Tusculum  remains  nearly  intact ; 
the  tiers  of  seats  were  softly  indicated  beneath  the 
snow,  whence  rose  on  the  proscenium  the  shafts  of 
some  Doric  columns,  fluted,  massive,  and  without 
stylobates ;  the  art  of  Magna  Grracia,  brought  into 
fashion  by  the  villegiature  of  Pompeii,  of  Baise,  and 
Psestum,  must  have  smiled  at  a  Hellenized  aristocracy. 
Here  and  there  rows  of  pillars,  sunk  partially  under- 
ground and  surmounted  by  their  capitals,  rose  from  a 
dark  pavement  like  huge  mushrooms.  By  clamber- 
ing across  the  ruined  walls  we  obtained  one  of  those 
views  that  startle  the  eye  and  launch  the  mind  into 
the  infinite.  The  firmament  was  sombre,  save  in  the 
west,  where  a  luminous  girdle  extended  from  Monte 
Gennaro  to  the  mouth  of  the  Tiber  5  the  land  there- 
fore lay  in  very  deep  shadow,  but  was  clearly  de- 
fined. As  far  as  the  last  hills  that  divide  Rome  from 
the  sea,  the  outlines  were  sharply  cut  in  two  or  three 
tones  of  violet  melting  into  carmine.  Under  an  emer- 
ald opening,  through  which  the  broken  clouds  en- 
gulfed a  sheaf  of  rays,  the  snows  of  the  Sabine  coun- 
try stood  out  with  metallic  brightness.  But  what  was 
most  singular  in  these  vast  horizons  was  the  contrast 
of  the  Siberia  of  the  mountains  with  the  spring-like 


320  KOME. 

Canaan  of  the  plains :  Rome,  where  you  could  dis- 
tmguish  S.  Peter's  and  the  Coliseum,  seemed  aflame; 
we  were  shivering  in  snow. 

Half  an  hour  after,  revived  by  a  breath  of  warm 
wind,  we  descended  to  Frascati ;  passing  the  villa 
Rufinella,  which  belonged  to  Victor  Emmanuel ;  then 
the  viUa  Mondragone,  so  vain  of  its  three  hundred 
and  seventy-four  windows  |  the  villa  Taverna,  and 
I  know  not  how  many  others ;  for  as  you  enter 
Frascati,  the  villa  of  the  Belvedere,  designed  by 
Giacomo  della  Porta  for  Cardinal  Aldobrandini,  drives 
all  the  rest  from  your  mind. 


TRAJAN'S  FORUM.  321 


CHAPTER    XVI. 

Ix  the  midst  of  the  busy  quarters  lying  at  the  base 
of  the  Quirinalj  you  come  out  upon  a  great  piazza 
which  you  name  at  once  without  ever  having  seen  it 
before:  Trajan's  Cohimn  serves  as  ensign  for  a  forum, 
of  which  Apollodorus  of  Damascus  erected  the  por- 
ticoes. The  lines  described  by  the  bases  of  a  plan- 
tation of  pillars  will  help  you  to  identify  the  perim- 
eter of  the  temple  which  Hadrian  consecrated,  and 
the  site  of  the  Ulpian  Library  which  was  divided  into 
two  chambers — one  for  Greek  books,  and  the  other 
for  Latin  ;  and  finally  the  situation  of  the  basilica, 
opening  on  to  the  forum  and  with  its  apse  in  the 
north-northwest  direction.  Divided  into  five  aisles, 
it  was  paved  with  giallo  antico  and  violet  breccia; 
the  facings  were  in  marble  of  Luna ;  the  ceiling  of 
gilded  bronze  rested  on  granite  columns.  You  even 
find  the  remains  of  five  massive  steps  oi porta  santa, 
upon  which  stood  the  rich  pedestal  of  the  monument : 
Dion  Cassius  has  described  all  these  wonders.  The 
basilica  survived  the  invasions  of  the  barbarians  and 
even  the  Vandals  of  Genseric ;  but  the  contests  of 
the  middle  ages  and  the  pious  brutalities  of  the  stupid 
and  valorous  Normans  buried  in  ruins  a  monument^ 

21 


322  KOME. 

which,  for  Christians  especially,  should  have  been  an 
object  of  veneration. 

It  was  in  the  Ulpian  Basilica  that,  in  312,  Con- 
stantine,  having  assembled  the  notables  of  the  empire, 
seated  himself  in  the  presbyterium,  to  proclaim  his 
abjuration  of  polytheism  in  favor  of  the  religion  of 
Christ  I  on  that  day  and  spot  the  prince  closed  the 
cycle  of  antiquity,  opened  the  catacombs,  and  inaugu- 
rated the  modern  Avorld.  The  Acts  of  S.  Sylvester 
describe  many  passages  of  the  discourse  in  wdiich, 
"invoking  truth  against  mischievous  divisions,"  and 
declaring  that  he  "  put  away  superstitions  born  of 
ignorance  and  reared  on  unreason,"  the  emperor  or- 
dains that  "  churches  be  opened  to  Christians,  and 
that  the  priests  of  the  temples  and  those  of  Christ  en- 
joy the  same  privileges."  He  himself  undertakes  to 
build  a  church  in  his  Lateran  palace. 

The  senators  listened  to  the  harangue  in  dull 
silence,  for  the  patrician  houses  remained  attached  to 
the  old  worship.  But  along  the  aisles  of  the  basilica 
pressed  the  Christian  populace,  now:for  the  first  time 
expanding  in  the  sunshine.  When  the  emperor 
ceased  speaking,  "there  w^as  as  it  were  a  long  breath;" 
then  the  popular  joy  burst  forth,  and  the  cries  of  the 
midtitude  broke  out  "  for  the  space  of  nearly  two 
hours."  They  exalted  the  power  of  Christ  and  his 
glory,  and  then,  the  enthusiasm  reaching  almost  to 
delirium,  they  declared  to  be  foes  of  the  emperor  all 
who  should  not  honor  the  God  who  had  vanquished 


TRAJAN'S  COLUMN.  323 

Maxentius  ;  at  last  the  populace,  exasperated  by  the 
attitude  of  the  senators,  demanded  the  expidsion  of 
the  old  priests  and  the  proscription  of  all  who  con- 
tinued to  offer  sacrifice.  A  massacre  Avas  imminent, 
when  Constantine,  again  speaking,  began  to  set  forth 
the  difference  between  the  service  of  God  and  that  of 
men,  that  the  second  is  forced  while  the  first  is  free. 
"  To  be  a  Christian,"  he  said,  "  it  is  needful  to  desire 
to  become  one.  To  refuse  admission  to  one  who 
seeks  it  woidd  be  blameworthy  ;  to  impose  it  would 
be  against  equity  ;  this  is  the  rule  of  truth.  Those 
who  do  not  imitate  us  shall  not  lose  our  good  graces ; 
those  Avho  become  Christians  Avith  us  shall  be  our 
friends."  Truly  great  on  that  day,  Constantine  had 
the  tolerance  of  a  sage,  a  rare  virtue  among  neophytes; 
at  one  stroke  he  proclaimed  the  faith  of  Christ  and 
freedom  of  conscience.  To  regain  what  he  gave,  not 
less  than  fifteen  centuries  were  needed. 

It  Avas  without  doubt  in  commemoration  of  these 
events,  that  Sixtus  V.  raised  the  statue  of  S.  Peter  on 
the  summit  of  the  column  of  Trajan,  to  replace  that 
of  the  emperor,  which  was  carried  off  in  663  by  that 
Constans  II.  Avho  pillaged  Rome,  and  Avho  sold  to  a 
Jew  broker  the  debris  of  the  Colossus  of  Rhodes,  a 
bronze  work  of  Chares,  who  Avas  a  pupil  of  Lysippus. 
I  do  not  think  there  exists  any  monument  in  the 
Avorld  more  precious  or  more  exquisite  in  iis  propor- 
tions than  Trajan's  Column,  nor  one  that  has  rendered 
more  capital  service.      This  has  been  set  forth  Avith 


324  ROME. 

more  authority  than  I  can  pretend  to,  by  Viollet-le- 
Duc,  the  architect  who  has  written  best  on  his  own 
art  J  his  description  sums  up  the  subject  and  makes 
everything  clear.  A  set  of  pictures  of  the  campaigns 
of  Trajan  against  the  Dacians, — the  bas-reliefs  repro- 
duce the  arms,  the  accoutrements,  the  engines  of  war, 
the  dwellings  of  the  barbarians  ;  we  discern  the  breed 
of  the  warriors  and  their  horses ;  we  look  upon  the 
ships  of  the  time,  canoes  and  quinqueremes  ;  women 
of  all  ranks,  priests  of  all  theogonies,  sieges,  and  as- 
saiilts.  Such  are  the  merits  of  this  sculptured  host, 
that  Polidoro  da  Caravaggio,  Giulio  Romano,  Michael 
Angelo,  and  all  the  artists  of  the  Renaissance  have 
drawn  thence  models  of  style  and  picturesque  group- 
ing. 

Trajan's  Column  is  of  pure  Carrara  marble.  The 
shaft  measures  about  ninety-four  English  feet,  by 
twelve  in  diameter  at  the  base,  and  ten  below  the  cap- 
ital, which  is  Doric  and  carved  out  of  a  single  block ; 
the  column  is  composed  of  thirty-four  blocks,  hollowed 
out  internally  and  cut  into  a  winding  stair.  A  series  of 
bas-reliefs,  divided  from  one  another  by  a  narrow 
band,  run  spirally  around  the  shaft  parallel  to  the  in- 
ner staircase  of  a  hundred  and  eighty-two  steps,  and 
describes  twenty-three  circuits  to  reach  the  platform 
on  which  the  statue  is  placed.  The  foot  and  the 
pedestal  are  seventeen  feet  high  ;  the 'torus,  of  enor- 
mous diameter,  is  a  monolith  5  the  whole  construction 
rises  a  hundred  and  thirty-five  feet  from  the  ground. 


Basilica  of  S.  John,  Lateran 


S.  JOHN  LATEKAN.  325 

These  thirty-four  blocks,  measuring  eleven  metres  in 
circumference  by  one  in  height,  had — a  task  of  con- 
siderable precision — to  have  holes  drilled  in  them  for 
the  screws  of  the  staircase,  it  being  necessary  to  de- 
termine from  the  inside  precisely  where  these  borings 
must  be  made  in  order  not  to  break  the  continuity  of 
the  bas-reliefs,  executed  by  several  different  hands, 
and  which  are  more  deeply  worked  in  proportion  as 
they  gain  in  height,  so  as  to  appear  of  an  equal  pro- 
jection. 

From  the  Ulpian  Basilica,  where  he  has  just  made 
the  church  free,  let  us  follow  Constantino  to  his 
Lateran  house,  where  he  founded  the  first  cathedral. 

Built  by  Constantine  in  the  enclosure  of  his  palace, 
S.  John  Lateran  is  the  metropolis  of  the  Roman  bishop- 
ric, as  officially  recognized  by  the  emperors.  The 
son  of  S.  Helena,  as  he  had  announced  at  the  foot  of 
Trajan's  Column,  set  apart  for  the  cathedral  and  habi- 
tation of  the  bishops  a  portion  of  his  OAvn  residence  to 
the  east  of  the  Coelian,  the  old  confiscated  domain  of 
that  Plautius  Lateranus  Avho  was  driven  from  the  Sen- 
ate and  exiled  for  having  been  one  of  Messalina's 
lovers ;  afterwards  recalled,  he  was  put  to  death  by 
Nero  for  having  taken  part  in  the  conspiracy  of  Piso 
and  Epicharis.  It  was  he  who,  Avhen  stabbed  by  the 
tribune  Statins,  died  Avithout  pronouncing  a  Avord  or 
uttering  a  complaint,  ^'plenus  consfautis  siJenfii,^^  says 
Tacitus,  "  nee  tribuuo  ohjicieus  eamdcm  conscientiam.'''' 

The  name  of  Lateranus,  avIio  perished  in  the  year 


326  KOME. 

of  the  martyrdom  of  S.  Peter,  was  destined  to  an  un- 
foreseen but  lasting  renown  ;  for  after  Constantine 
had  finished  his  primitive  church,  adorned  with  such 
splendor  that  it  was  called  the  Golden  Basilica,  after 
also  S.  Sylvester  had  consecrated  it  to  the  Saviour, 
and  eight  years  later,  after  Lucius  II.  had  dedicated 
it  to  the  two  saints  John,  the  foundation  of  Constan- 
tine continued  to  bear  the  name  of  Lateranus,  of  that 
victim  whose  memory  the  people  had  perpetuated  in 
the  designation  of  an  imperial  palace  basely  acquired. 
The  poet  Prudentius  Clemens,  who  Avrote  in  the 
fourth  century,  spoke  of  the  Basilica  of  Lateran : 
"  Who  does  not  now  despise  the  polluted  altar  of 
Jupiter,  to  run  with  the  multitude  to  the  abode  of 
Lateranus  in  search  of  the  royal  unction  of  the  Chris- 
tian !" 

Elected  in  the  church  in  Lucinis,  a  designation  de- 
rived, according  to  Pliny,  from  lucus,  S.  Damasus 
was  consecrated  in  the  Lateran  Basilica ;  it  is  there 
that  ever  since  the  time  of  Sylvester  I.  the  popes 
have  taken  formal  possession  of  their  see.  At  S. 
Peter  of  the  Vatican  the  pope  is  the  spiritual  sover- 
eign of  the  world;  at  S.  John  Lateran  he  is  bishop 
of  Rome  ;  the  basilica  of  S.  John  is  the  cathedral  of 
Rome.  Hence  the  church  has  been  described  as 
Mater  ct  caput  ecclesiarum  urhls  et  orhis. 

S.  John  Lateran  preserves  its  pre-eminence ;  in 
the  procession  which  starts  from  the  nave  of  S.  Peter's 
the  clergy  of  the  Vatican  Basilica  only  take  the  sec- 


S.  JOHN  LATERAN.  327 

ond  place.  From  all  time  this  mother  church  has 
kept  its  litm'gic  rites.  "  The  church  of  Lateran," 
wrote  Abelard  to  S.  Bernard,  "  this  mother  church 
of  all  the  others,  retains  the  ancient  office,  which 
none  of  her  daughters  do,  not  even  the  church  of  the 
Roman  palace."  It  allowed  no  other  prayer  than  the 
Pater.  "  It  is  seemly,"  wrote  Deacon  John  in  the 
thirteenth  century,  "  that  the  supreme  church  should 
use  only  the  supreme  prayer."  He  adds  that  at  the 
third  versicle  of  the  Agnus  Dei  they  left  out  the  dona 
nobis  pacem,  the  Lateran  being  the  symbol  of  the 
eternal  temple  in  which  Christ  shall  be  the  peace  of 
the  just,  and  in  which  there  will  be  no  more  need  of 
craving  it.  S.  John  Lateran  had  no  doors,  only  cur- 
tains, in  order  that  people  might  be  able  to  find  refuge 
there  at  any  hoar ;  it  was  through  this  metropolis 
that  the  right  of  asylum  was  handed  down  from  the 
pagan  temples  to  our  churches.  Until  the  reign  of 
Pius  VII.  the  ncAvly-elected  pope,  after  leaving  the 
Quirinal,  used  to  come  and  take  possession  of  the 
cathedral  of  Lateran  ;  riding  thither  on  a  white  mule 
richly  caparisoned,  preceded  by  the  religious  orders, 
the  cardinals,  the  bishops,  and  patriarchs,  escorted 
by  the  Swiss  and  the  Guardia  Nobilo.  An  old  en- 
graving, the  accession  of  Clement  X.,  is  the  only 
thing  that  can  now  represent  to  us  this  suppressed 
procession. 

Of  all  these  grandeurs  no  other  witness  is  left  save 
a  Baptistery,  separated  from  the  church  by  a  court, 


328  ROME. 

and  disfigured  by  various  restorations ;  the  eight  col- 
umns of  porphyry,  surmounted  by  eight  cokimns  of 
marble,  supporting  the  octagonal  cupola,  are,  how- 
ever, in  Constantinian  style,  as  well  as  the  pillars  and 
the  ancient  entablature,  which,  though  now  set  in  the 
wall,  still  mark  the  centre  of  the  ancient  porch. 
There,  according  to  a  Roman  legend,  Constantino 
was  baptized ;  but  this  is  a  mistake,  for  he  did  not 
receive  baptism  until  at  Nicomedia  he  felt  the  ap- 
proach of  death.  In  those  days  they  gladly  put  off 
baptism  as  long  as  possible,  as  it  was  a  purification 
from  all  stains. 

Its  Baptistery  apart,  San  Giovanni  in  Laterano  is 
now  little  more  than  a  spot  consecrated  by  great 
memories.  The  basilica  of  Constantino  had  lasted 
ten  centuries,  when,  towards  1308,  a  fire  destroyed 
the  temple  and  palace.  Clement  V.,  who  lived  at 
Avignon,  commenced  the  reconstruction,  and  carried 
it  on  to  an  advanced  stage  ;  then  Urban  V.  and  Alex- 
ander VI.  continued  and  decorated  it ;  Pius  IV.  bur- 
dened the  nave  with  its  heavy  gilded  ceiling,  and 
erected  on  the  piazza  the  lateral  fagade  with  its  two 
bell-towers,  too  far  apart ;  Sixtus  V.  commissioned 
Fontana  to  add  the  portico,  and  Salimbenl  to  paint  it. 
It  was  there  that  Nicholas  Cordier  placed  the  bronze 
statue  of  Henry  IV.,  canon,  like  all  the  sovereigns  of 
France,  of  S.  John  Lateran.  Giacomo  della  Porta, 
under  Clement  VIII.,  rebuilt  the  transept;  Borromini 
rebuilt  the  rest  under  Innocent  X.;    Clement  XII. 


S.  JOHN  LATERAN.  329 

liad  the  principal  fa9ade  erected  by  Galilei,  a  mean 
imitation  of  that  of  S.  Peter,  and,  like  that,  sur- 
mounted by  a  regiment  of  statues.  The  style  of  the 
forerunners  of  Bernini  pervades  the  work  ;  as  at  the 
Vatican,  there  is  a  vast  portico  with  the  Porta  Santa  at 
the  extremity,  and  five  other  entrances,  of  which  the 
central  one,  in  bronze,  is  said  to  come  from  the 
^milian  basilica :  at  the  end  of  the  gallery  rises  a 
colossal  statue  of  Constantine,  the  only  authentic 
likeness  of  that  emperor.  Under  the  aisles  you  find 
the  enormous  pilasters  of  8.  Peter,  square  piers  in 
which  Borromini  imprisoned  fine  columns  of  granite : 
and  in  these  pilasters,  niches,  whence  project  twelve 
distorted  and  dull  colossi  of  the  Apostles,  imitations 
of  the  attitudinizing  giants  of  S.  Peter's.  Bas-reliefs, 
statues,  pictures,  facings  of  grey  marble, — all  is  pale 
and  cold,  all  has  a  savor  of  artifice  and  the  theatre. 
Highly  extolled,  as  a  masterpiece  of  the  exuberance 
of  the  decline,  is  the  Corsini  chapel,  containing  the 
tombs  of  Clement  XII.  and  his  uncle,  the  cardinal 
Neri ;  but  the  first  is  bad,  and  the  second  a  burlesque. 
To  realize  how  far  art  has  fallen,  you  must  examine 
the  chapel  of  the  Torlonia,  Avhere,  however,  Tenerani 
has  executed  in  very  high  relief  a  Descent  from  the 
Cross  in  a  pure  and  delicate  style,  though  it  is  too 
sentimental  for  religious  inspiration. 

Near  the  door,  at  the  back  of  a  pillar,  a  small  fresco 
attributed  to  Giotto  hands  down  to  us  the  likeness  of 
Boniface  VIII.,  Avho,  placed  between  two  cardinals, 


330  KOME. 

proclaims  the  jubilee  of  1300.*  The  pontifical  high 
altar,  where  the  Pope  celebrates  facing  the  people, 
occupies  the  centre  of  the  arm  of  the  cross,  and  is 
surmounted  by  a  tabernacle  or  ciborium  of  the  four- 
teenth century,  adorned  with  Sienese  frescoes  of  ex- 
quisite composition.  In  the  small  subjects  of  the 
Coronation  and  the  Annunciation,  the  heads  possess 
that  delicate  and  dreamy  beauty  which  delights  us  in 
the  works  of  Guido  and  Duccio ;  but  by  the  care  of 
Pius  IX.  these  works  have  been  restored  so  "  con- 
scientiously," that  at  first  I  took  them  for  contempo- 
rary pasticci.  However,  the  holy  father  had  a  fine 
staircase  constructed  to  lead  to  the  Confession  of  S. 
John,  which  is  guarded  by  one  of  the  Colonna,  Pope 
Martin  V,,  worthily  entombed  by  Simone,  brother  of 
Donatello.  Although  S.  John  Lateran  has  been  re- 
built at  least  three  times,  we  are  led  to  suppose  that 
the  fire  of  1308,  Avhich  destroyed  the  building  of  the 
fourth  century,  still  spared  the  apse,  or  else  that  this 
chevet  had  been  re-erected  before  the  end  of  the 
thirteenth  ;  for  the  vault  of  the  tribune  is  decorated 
with  mosaics  signed  by  Jacopo  da  Turrita,  and  Fra 
Jacopo  da  Camerino,  and  executed  in  1291  for  Pope 
Nicholas  IV. ;  Gaddo  Gaddi  is  said  to  have  finished 
them.     In  sentiment  and  style  they  are  not  very  re- 

*  "Pope  Boniface  VIII.,  between  two  priests  announcing  the 
Jubilee,  exhibits  in  the  features  of  the  Pojje  a  remarkable  union 
of  cunning  and  hilarity,  combined  with  a  certain  dignity  of  form. " 
— Kuyler,  Hand-book  oj  Painting. 


S.  JOHN  LATERAN.  331 

mote  from  art  as  it  Avas  practiced  in  the  He  de  France 
between  1200  and  1250 ;  but  here  the  design  has 
more  suppleness,  and  the  color  has  a  sweet  and  tender 
brightness,  Avhich  the  mosaic  Avorkers  of  Venice  two 
centuries  later  seldom  surpassed. 

Pious  and  trustful  soids  aa^II  have  shoAvn  to  them 
the  table  on  AA^hich  our  Lord  partook  of  supper  Avith 
his  disciples  the  night  before  his  death  ;*  in  any  case 
the  AA'Ood  is  very  old.  Let  me  call  attention  to  the 
paA'ement,  rosettes  and  festoons  of  costly  marble, 
embroidered  Avith  mosaics  separated  by  plaques  of 
porphyry  ;  Ave  OAve  this  carpet  of  precious  stones  to 
Martin  V.,  AA'ho  died  in  1431.  I  might  also  point 
out  for  their  A^alue  alone,  some  remarkable  columns 
of  red  oriental  granite  Avhich  define  the  na\'e,  and  the 
fluted  pillars  of  giallo  antico  AAdiich  support  the 
organ ;  the  first  are  thirty-four  feet  high ;  the  second, 
also  monoliths  and  the  largest  knoAAu  of  this  rare 
material,  are  nine  metres  high.  But  the  great  mar- 
vels are  the  four  fluted  columns  in  gilded  bronze  of 
the  altar  of  the  Holy  Sacrament ;  they  are  not  less 
than  eight  and  a  half  feet  in  circumference.  On  their 
enormous  composite  capitals  reposes  an  entablature  of 
bronze  ;  the  purity  of  the  lines,  the  precision  of  the 
flutings,  the  curve  of  the  A'olutes,  the  relief  of  the 
acanthus,  the  sparkling  play  of  light  on  these  bouquets 
of   golden   leafage — everything   about   this    gigantic 

*  Or  on  which  S.  Peter  celebrated  mass? 


332  EOME. 

gold-Avork  produces  a  feeling  of  astonishment  and 
entire  satisfaction.  Then,  what  theories  there  are 
as  to  their  origin !  It  was  Octavianus,  say  some, 
who,  out  of  the  bronze  prows  of  the  vessels  taken 
at  Actium,  had  these  votive  columns  made  to  be 
placed  in  the  Capitol.  They  took  them,  say  others, 
from  the  basilica  of  the  great  Julius,  or  from  the 
palace  of  Titus.  There  are  those,  again,  Avho  think 
they  belonged  to  the  Golden  Basilica,  at  the  time 
when  Constantine  made  of  it  one  of  the  marvels  of 
Rome, 

If  you  are  bent  on  finding  some  remains  of  the 
Lateran  buildings  dating  back  to  a  respectable  age, 
you  must  seek  them  in  the  cloister.  This  monument 
of  the  thirteenth  century,  the  arches  of  which  sur- 
mounted by  mosaics  rest  on  small  columns  diversified 
by  an  ingenious  fancy,  this  cloister  is  one  of  the  most 
delicious  erections  in  Rome  or  in  the  world.  It  can 
only  be  compared  to  that  of  S.  Paul,  belonging  to  the 
same  epoch ;  they  both  have  that  variety  character- 
istic of  the  architecture  of  the  middle  ages.  Under 
the  arcades  you  see  the  massive  throne  of  the  old 
basilica ;  how  many  pontiffs  have  sat  on  this  since 
the  eighth  century !  Here  also  are  preserved  a  num- 
ber of  bas-reliefs  earlier  than  the  fourteenth  century, 
and  notably,  among  other  fragments  of  the  old  altar, 
a  graceful  carving,  in  which  some  small  clerks  blow 
with  pipes  on  the  pan  of  a  censer.  Let  us  also  notice 
a  marble  statue  of  Boniface  VIII.     In  the  middle  of 


S.  CKOCE.  B38 

this  court,  with  some  neglected  plants  growing  around 
it,  is  a  fine  well  of  the  sixth  century. 

From  S.  John  Lateran  to  Santa  Croce,  the  fourth 
basilica  of  Rome,  the  distance  is  short.  S.  Helen, 
when  she  brought  back  from  Jerusalem  the  Saviour's 
cross,  built  a  church  for  it,  which,  being  rebuilt  by 
Benedict  XIV.  in  1743,  with  the  exception  of  the 
apse,  still  betrays  the  inclination  to  imitate  S.  Peter's. 
But  the  bolder  facade  does  not  want  grace  ;  a  pretty 
open  campanile  of  the  thirteenth  century,  a  rustic 
chapel  close  by,  masses  of  trees  grouped  among  the 
buildings,  make  of  the  little  church  of  Domenico 
Gregorini  a  series  of  landscapes. 

One  would  not  feel  bound  to  visit  it,  hoAvever,  were 
it  not  for  some  frescoes  which,  although  a  little  too 
much  retouched,  leave  no  doubt  as  to  the  name  of 
their  author,.  Pinturicchio,*  They  represent  the 
finding  of  the  holy  cross  ;  the  discovery  of  the  three 
pieces  of  wood,  the  trials  to  which  they  were  sub- 
jected, and  the  procession  of  S.  Helen  on  her  return 
to  Jerusalem.  Christ  hovers  above  the  semicircle. 
These  compositions  are  dramatic,  still  simple  and 
already  skilful :  it  is  the  apogee  of  the  inspired  school 
which  immediately  precedes  Michael  Angelo  and 
Eaphael.  Near  the  high  altar  you  descend  to  the 
chapel  of  S.  Helen,  where  the  light  is  too  poor  to  get 
a  very  satisfactory  view  of  the  mosaics,  mistakenly 

*  Attributed  by  Crowe  and  Cavalcaselle  to  Fiorenzo  di  Lorenzo. 


334  ROME. 

attributed  to  Balthazar  Peruzzi.  This  chapel  is  di- 
vided in  two  by  a  grating,  which  women  cannot  pass 
without  incurring  excommunication,  the  reserved 
space  containing  a  chest  in  which  they  keep  a  very 
large  fragment  of  the  true  cross,  the  only  one  whose 
authenticity  can  be  guaranteed. 

Let  us  return  to  the  Piazza  del  Laterano.  Soli- 
tude and  silence  reign  on  this  deserted  grass-grown 
plateau ;  the  obelisk  of  Thothmes,  the  greatest  of 
known  monoliths,  casts  a  shadow  which  from  morn- 
ing to  night  travels  around  the  piazza  without  meet- 
ing a  creature.  The  street  which,  since  the  time  of 
the  Flavians,  has  led  from  the  Coliseum  to  the  palace 
of  Lateranus,  grows  more  and  more  deserted  as  you 
approach  the  square ;  and  when  from  a  rather  ele- 
vated point  you  view  the  few  surrounding  houses, 
those  nearest  to  the  church  lower  than  the  others,  it 
seems  as  though  they  were  prostrating  themselves 
before  their  mother.  Two  hospitals,  some  cloistered 
buildings  which  connect  the  baptistery  with  the  chevet 
of  the  church,  the  principal  front  of  the  palace,  with 
its  peculiarly  cold  aspect — there  you  have  the  Piazza 
del  Laterano.  On  whichever  side  you  turn,  however, 
sight  and  mind  are  well  repaid.  From  the  ancient 
Porta  Asinaria,  by  which  Totila  invaded  Rome,  to 
the  Prfenestine  gate  marked  by  the  triumphal  arch 
of  Agrippa,  the  glacis  descending  in  a  gentle  slope  is 
bounded  by  the  crenelated  walls  of  Aurelian,  in  which 
the   Amphitheatrum   Castrense   is   incrusted,   a  ring 


THE  LATERAN  PIAZZA.  335 

whose  collet  is  the  basilica  of  S.  Croce.  On  the  other 
horizon,  vague  outlying  spaces  are  surrounded  Ly  the 
Neronian  and  Claudian  aqueducts  connecting  them- 
selves with  the  walls,  beyond  which  you  discover  the 
theatre  of  the  earliest  wars  of  the  republic,  spreading 
plains  across  Avhich  lie  the  old  roads,  recognizable  by 
their  tombs.  The  horizon  is  terminated  by  hills,  and 
the  ancient  cities  of  Latium  which  decorate  the  ped- 
estals of  the  Sabine  Hills.  To  mark  these  successive 
distances  are  curtains  of  dark  trees,  and  nearer,  in 
front  of  the  Scala  Santa  where  pilgrims  climb  on  their 
knees  the  eight-and-twenty  steps  of  the  staircase  of 
Pontius  Pilate,  the  Triclinium,  a  fragment  of  the 
ancient  refectory  of  the  popes  of  the  eighth  century : 
Benedict  XIV.  added  to  it  an  apse  with  copies  of 
three  mosaics  of  Leo  III.  on  a  golden  gromid.  That 
in  the  middle  represents  the  apostles  girding  them- 
selves to  go  forth  and  preach  to  the  nations ;  the  two 
others,  S.  Sylvester  and  Constantine  receiving  from 
Christ's  hands  the  Labarum  and  the  keys ;  then  S. 
Peter  giving  the  pallium  to  Leo  III.  and  the  standard 
to  Charles  the  Great ;  two  portraits  of  the  time,  which 
are  unique,  and  which  survive  in  the  open  air. 
Around  you  in  this  deserted  extremity  of  the  city, 
aU  is  monumental,  but  without  symmetry  ;  all  is  cele- 
brated and  neglected. 

At  long  intervals  you  meet  a  few  sick  people,  who 
have  come  in  from  the  fields  to  climb  the  Scala  Santa. 
No  spot  seems  so  Avell  exposed  to  the  purifying  breezes 


336  ROME. 

from  the  mountains,  none  less  swampy  nor  farther 
away  from  unwholesome  quarters ;  yet  fever  reigns 
on  this  plateau,  and  has  reigned  there  from  all  time, 
to  such  an  extent  as  to  depopulate  it.  But  what  is 
still  more  singular,  this  fever-stricken  spot  has  been 
selected  as  a  site  for  tAvo  hospitals  for  fever  patients. 

The  palace  is  only  inhabited  by  custodians.  Six- 
tus  V.  had  it  rebuilt  by  Fontana  on  the  foundations 
of  the  old  edifice,  which  was  burnt  in  the  sixteenth 
century.  The  interior,  a  cloister  with  two  stories,  is 
damp,  austere,  and  cold.  As  men  could  not  live  there, 
Gregory  XVI.  installed  statues  in  it,  and  Pius  IX.  an 
historical  museum  which  is  curious  in  a  very  different 
way. 

Let  us  begin  with  a  brief  notice  of  the  Gregorian 
collections,  which  occupy  no  less  than  fourteen  apart- 
ments. First  there  is  a  bas-relief  of  Trajan  with 
three  other  figures,  a  fragment  from  the  old  arch  of 
that  emperor,  which  has  been  taken  from  his  Forum. 
No  oth^  likeness  of  Trajan  has  such  delicacy  or  such 
truth  of  expression — the  intellectual  and  benevolent 
physiognomy  of  a  man  who,  understanding  all,  can 
pardon  all.  A  pretty  bas-relief  of  Medea  with  Jason 
made  young  again  was  found  in  a  tomb  of  the  Ap- 
pian  Way — a  symbolical  eidogy  of  a  young  woman 
by  some  happy  greybeard.  The  boast  of  this  col- 
lection is  the  Antinoiis,  the  drapery  of  which  has 
been  re-handled,  but  whose  execution  is  marked  by 
a  wonderful  polish.     It  represents  a  stout  young  man. 


STATUE  OF  SOPHOCLES.  337 

sleek,  Avith  a  touch  of  sensuality,  and  in  my  opinion 
savors  of  the  inferiority  of  its  aim ;  the  body,  so  per- 
fect in  its  finish,  is  treated  in  a  heavy  manner.  The 
Braschi  found  this  masterpiece  near  Palestrina,  and 
Pope  Gregory  paid  seventy  thousand  francs  for  it. 
After  giving  some  attention  to  a  collection  of  cippi 
from  the  Appian  Way,  I  stopped  in  front  of  two 
Hermes  with  fauns'  heads ;  they  have  that  goatish 
character,  full  of  wantonness  and  irony,  that  forked 
beard  and  those  V-shaped  eyebrows  over  round  eyes, 
which  constitute  the  type  of  the  devil,  especially 
since  the  Germans,  under  the  inspiration  of  Goethe, 
have  given  him  the  traits  of  the  satyr. 

The  Gregorian  museum  possesses  the  finest  draped 
statue  I  have  ever  seen  ;  it  represents  a  man  of  noble 
carriage,  eloquent,  sure  of  himself,  accustomed  to 
dazzle,  practised  in  making  his  talents  avail  by  a 
seductive  authority  of  mien.  Outlined  from  head  to 
foot  beneath  the  clever  negligence  of  the  drapery, 
this  figure  is  a  triumphant  success,  and  the  great 
Sophocles, — for  it  is  he  as  Jahn  and  Welcker  have 
proved, — falls  Avith  ease  into  the  studied  attitude 
which  has  become  natural  to  him,  and  which  com- 
pletes the  representation.  Under  the  folds  of  the 
robe,  half-tightened  around  him,  the  lines  of  the  body 
are  seen  in  a  harmonious  curve,  the  head  harmoniz- 
ing perfectly  with  the  attitude.  It  was  near  the  old 
Anxur  that  they  dug  up  this  masterpiece  in  the  time 
of  Gregory  XVI.,  and  the  family  of  the  counts  An- 
22 


338  ROME. 

toneJli  offered  it  to  the  sovereign  :  it  is  even  main- 
tained that  it  was  in  order  to  lodge  it  worthily  that 
Pope  CapeUari  transformed  the  palace  into  a  museum. 
Let  us  also  mention  among  a  host  of  objects  of  the  high- 
est interest  to  the  antiquary,  a  tombstone  of  a  master 
mason  Avitli  a  Avheel  for  raising  stones  on  it.  Another 
sarcophagus  shows  us  the  arch  consecrated  to  Isis, 
replaced  on  the  highest  point  of  the  Via  Sacra  by 
the  Arch  of  Titus. 

But  the  Lateran  Palace  has  objects  of  a  more 
curious  kind  in  the  galleries  and  in  some  chambers 
of  the  upper  story,  where  are  preserved  the  boxers 
and  gladiators  in  mosaic  that  were  taken  from  the 
Thermal  of  Caracalla.  These  naked  figures,  stronger 
than  nature,  are  likenesses  to  which  are  attached  the 
models'  names ;  realistic  works,  if  ever  there  Avere 
any,  of  vigor  in  all  its  ugliness,  animal  vigor  stripped 
of  all  conventional  treatment. 

Let  us  proceed  to  that  portion  of  the  museum  which 
was  an  idea  of  Pius  IX.  The  pontiff  wished  the  house 
of  Constantino  and  the  first  cloister  of  S.  Sylvester 
to  become  a  museum  of  Christian  epigraphy  and 
iconography.  So,  adding  to  the  inscriptions,  the 
tombstones,  and  sarcophagi  dxig  up  every  day  in  the 
course  of  the  excavations,  fac-similes  of  paintings 
that  it  was  neither  possible  nor  proper  to  remove 
from  the  catacombs,  Pius  IX.  formed  so  rich  a  col- 
lection, that  all  along  the  broad  state  staircase,  on  the 
landings,  in  the   chambers  and  galleries  of  the  first 


THE  LATERAN  MUSEUM.  339 

storv',  the  walls  are  entirely  covered.  The  pope  had 
all  these  objects  classified  by  the  man  most  learned  in 
such  matters,  the  Cavalier  de'  Rossi.  This  museum 
is  a  unique  source  of  information  as  to  the  forms,  the 
rites,  the  spirit,  and  the  tendencies  of  dogma  in  those 
almost  unknown  ages. 

At  the  first  steps  of  the  staircase  you  are  stopped 
by  a  series  of  sarcophagi,  on  which  bas-reliefs  bring 
together  the  correlative  symbols  of  the  Old  Testa- 
ment and  the  New.  One  of  the  most  complete  is  a 
large  Constantinian  vessel,  the  carvings  of  which 
placed  over  one  another  in  pairs,  and  grouping  several 
subjects  in  four  divisions,  reproduce  the  symbolism  of 
our  spiritual  history.  Man  and  his  companion  are 
represented  as  created  not  by  the  Father,  but  by  the 
Trinity  ;  Jesus  draws  from  the  side  of  Adam  the  first 
woman,  the  Father  touches  her  brow,  the  Holy  Spirit 
breathes  a  soul  into  her.  The  Son  and  the  Holy 
Spirit  are  always  beardless  ;  the  Father,  after  Olym- 
pian precedents,  is  also  young,  as  Diespiter  was. 
Then  comes  the  Fall,  so  represented  as  to  banish 
every  painful  or  humiliating  idea :  Christ  gives  to 
Adam  and  Eve  the  emblems  of  labor  ;  to  him  some 
ears  of  wheat,  to  her  a  sheep  Avhose  wool  she  is  to 
spin.  The  second  canto  opens  Avith  the  Incarnation 
of  the  Son  ;  the  magi  come  to  adore  ;  the  Virgin  is 
attended  by  two  youths,  the  Holy  Spirit  and  S.  Jo- 
seph :  the  latter  is  usually  represented  as  young  in 
the   primitive   monuments.      In   the   next   bas-reli^^f 


340  ROME. 

Christ  gives  sight  to  the  man  born  blind — symbol  of 
the  redemption.  Then  S.  Peter  denies  his  master : 
at  his  feet  the  cock  crows ;  this  second  fall  is  a  pen- 
dant to  the  first.  Then  the  apostle  repentant,  and 
confessing  the  faith,  is  dragged  along  by  pagans. 
Finally  he  becomes  Moses,  and  explains  the  sense  of 
the  figures ;  it  is  he,  Peter,  Avho  strikes  the  rock  and 
makes  the  water  gush  forth,  in  Avhich  we  see  a  troop 
of  the  faithful  borne  along  ;  Moses  and  Peter  play 
alternately  the  same  part.  Then  we  come  to  the 
Eucharist  figured  in  two  ways,  by  the  Marriage  of 
Cana,  and  the  Multiplication  of  the  Loaves  and 
Fishes.  The  fish,  ?;f/5'3?,  incomplete  anagram  of 
XpcfTTot;^  was  a  mysterious  sign  for  the  adepts  of  evan- 
gelical law  ;  it  often  appears  on  a  mausoleum  among 
pagan  divinities ;  only  the  Christians  knew  the  sig- 
nificance of  the  hieroglyph.  These  signs  were  indis- 
pensable for  the  neophytes  who,  mingling  in  the 
pagan  world,  concealed  the  dangerous  mystery  of 
their  faith  ;  it  Avas  said  or  written  of  a  friend,  in  giv- 
ing news  of  him:  "  He  eats  the  fish — he  lives  on  fish." 
The  meaning  escaped  the  profane.  In  Augustine's 
Civitas  Dei  I  find  this  passage  :  "  Fish  is  the  myste- 
rious name  of  Christ,  who,  plunged  into  our  mortality, 
could  keep  himself  living  in  it,  tliat  is,  without  sin." 
In  the  centre  of  the  sarcophagus  are  two  blank  medal- 
lions :  these  tombs  were  prepared  and  carved  before- 
hand, room  being  reserved  for  the  portraits  of  the 
future  purchasers. 


EARLY  CHRISTIAN  ART.  341 

The  study  of  symbols  teaches  us  to  determine  the 
Christian  myths  of  those  early  times  :  we  see  religion 
completely  formed  at  the  end  of  the  first  century,  in 
which  paintings  and  sculptures  are  taken  by  choice 
either  from  the  Gospel  of  S.  John,  a  tardy  and  vic- 
torious reply  to  the  scholars  who  thought  it  later  than 
Eutychian ;  or  from  the  allegorical  picture  of  the 
reign  of  Nero,  written  by  the  same  apostle  at  Patmos, 
and  called  the  Apocalypse.  Recent  researches  have 
shown  equally  plainly,  contrary  to  the  assertion  of 
Mgr.  Gerbet,  that  the  first  Christians  did  by  no  means 
abstain  from  personifying  God  the  Father.  For  a 
long  time  they  dissembled  the  mystery  of  the  sacra- 
ments under  emblems :  the  passage  of  the  Red  Sea 
meant  baptism ;  the  blind  restored  to  sight,  penitence ; 
Jonas  interprets  the  idea  of  resurrection.  Adam,  the 
first  sinner,  is  ahvays  beautiful ;  Eve  is  often  seated 
by  the  side  of  Mary,  and  in  the  hand  of  the  first 
woman  they  place  not  one  apple,  but  seven— the 
deadly  sins.  I  noticed  on  frescoes  of  the  first  century, 
the  Magian  kings  reduced  to  two,  or  raised  to  four ; 
they  wear  Phrygian  caps,  and  in  these  paintings  the 
Virgin  is  always  pretty  and  elaborately  draped.  Cer- 
tain subjects  are  represented  by  symbolical  animals, 
on  account  of  their  crudity :  thus,  a  sheep  between 
two  foxes  on  the  edge  of  a  fountain  represents  the 
chaste  Susannah.  So  far  as  concerns  usages  and 
costumes,  these  drawings  are  invaluable.  Besides 
the  facsimiles,  they  have  placed  in  the  collection  the 


342  EOME. 

remains  of  frescoes,  from  the  era  of  the  Caesars  down 
to  the  fifteenth  century,  fixed  on  canvas  with  much 
skill.  Of  the  greatest  interest  is  the  seated  statue 
of  S.  Hippolytus,  bishop  of  Porto,  a  work  of  the  third 
century  discovered  in  the  catacombs  of  S.  Lawrence. 
The  head  is  a  restoration,  but  engraved  against  the 
episcopal  seat  is  the  Paschal  calendar,  which  the 
prelate  composed  to  refute  the  Quartodecimani,  who 
obstinately  persisted  in  celebrating  Easter  on  the 
same  day  as  the  Jews. 

The  obelisk  on  the  Piazza  of  S.  John  Lateran  is, 
as  I  have  said,  the  loftiest  of  the  monoliths,  and  is 
covered  with  curious  hieroglyphics.  Constantine 
placed  it  on  ship  board  ;  had  it  dragged  to  Rome,  and 
set  it  up  in  the  Circus  Maximus.  Overthrown  by 
the  barbarians,  it  broke  into  three  pieces,  and  was 
buried  in  the  earth  ;  Sixtus  V.,  Avho  dug  it  up,  had 
the  pieces  joined  together,  and  then  erected  it  before 
his  palace  of  Lateran.* 

Gifted  Avith  most  energetic  activity,  this  pontiff  had 
a  passion  for  astonishing  colossi.  It  led  him  to  ex- 
hume the  needle  of  Ehamses  III.,  which  Octavianus 
brought  back  from  Heliopolis  after  Actium,  and  which 
Pliny  attributes  to  one  of  the  Pharaohs  named  Sem- 
sertes ;  Sixtus  V.  had  it  set  up  in   the   Piazza  del 

*  One  of  its  inscriptions  states  that  "The  King  has  erected  to 
(Amen)  these  immense  obelisks  at  the  upper  door  of  the  temple 
of  Apet  over  against  the  city  of  Thebes."  Tehut-mes  III.  (1600 
B.  C.  cir. )  Avas  the  Alexander  the  Great  of  Egyptian  History. 


ANCIENT  OBELISKS.  343 

Popolo.  It  is  the  second  of  the  three  obelisks  which 
are  earher  than  Cambyses  ;  the  third  is  that  of  which 
Augustus  made  a  gnomon  in  the  middle  of  the  Cam- 
pus Martins  5  it  marked  the  time  by  the  projection  of 
its  shadow  on  a  dial-plate  engraved  in  the  marble. 
Pius  YI.  disinterred  this  solar  obelisk  in  1789,  placed 
a  globe  on  the  top  of  it,  and  made  it  an  ornament  of 
the  Piazza  of  Monte  Citorio,  an  eminence  formed 
from  the  substructions  of  an  amphitheatre  erected  by 
Statilius  Scaurus.  Clement  XI.  placed  in  front  of  the 
Pantheon  the  ancient  needle  of  the  temples  of  Isis 
and  Serapis ;  Alexander  VII.  re-erected  that  of  the 
Mmerva,  found  in  1665  in  the  gardens  of  the  Do- 
minicans ;  Pius  VI.  dug  up  from  the  gardens  of  Sal- 
lust  that  of  the  Trinity,  and  from  the  tomb  of  Augus- 
tus that  of  the  Quirinal.  It  was  there  also  that  Sixtus 
V.  found  the  obelisk  in  red  granite  of  S.  Maria  ]\Iag- 
giore,  about  the  time  when  he  placed  in  front  of  the 
Vatican  basilica  the  obelisk  of  Caligida,  which  is  of 
less  archaeological  value,  since  it  is  free  from  inscrip- 
tions and  of  modern  origin,  for  Caius  Caligula  had  it 
cut.  Yet  of  aU  these  various  obelisks,  the  last  is  per- 
haps the  most  renowned,  because  to  its  erection  be- 
longs the  well-known  anecdote  of  the  man  Avho,  in  the 
midst  of  the  silence  imposed  under  penalty  of  death 
by  the  first  of  the  absolute  pontiffs,  saved  the  day, 
when  the  ropes  were  breaking,  by  calling  to  Fontana, 
"  Acqiia  allefnnl .'" — Avater  on  the  ropes.  This  spec- 
tator was  a  coaster  of  the   Genoese  Riviera,  named 


344  EOME. 

Bresca.  He  obtained  for  his  reward  authority  to  fly 
the  pontifical  flag  at  his  mast,  and  the  hereditary 
privilege  of  supplying  the  apostolic  palace  with  palm- 
leaves  on  Palm-Sunday. 


THE  COLONNA  PALACE.  345 


CHAPTER    XVII. 

The  Colomia  Palace  is  situated  between  the  Corso 
and  the  Quirinal,  on  whose  slopes  its  gardens  extend. 
It,  together  Avith  the  church  of  the  Santi  Apostoli,  oc- 
cupies one  of  the  great  sides  of  a  long  piazza,  bounded 
on  the  north  by  the  narrow  Saporelli  Palace,  Avhere 
died  the  last  Stuart,  nominally  James  III.  It  was  at 
the  Saporelli  Palace  that  a  young  maiden  was  brought 
up,  Avhose  romantic  reminiscences  and  correspondence 
have  been  skilfully  treated  by  Edmund  About  in  the 
romance  of  ToUa.  This  heroine  came  to  die  near 
here  in  the  convent  of  S.  Antonio,  Avhich  touches  on 
the  Piazza  S.  Maria  Maggiore. 

On  account  of  certain  analogies  of  style,  the  Colonna 
Palace  presents  a  curious  appearance  to  persons  Avho 
have  studied  the  decorations  of  our  royal  residences 
of  the  great  period.  It  is  not  that  the  galleries  are 
filled  Avith  paintings,  but  that  the  selections  are  happy, 
the  portraits  of  the  family  are  of  the  highest  A^alue, 
and  the  Colonna  Palace  preserves  pictures  that  are 
not  to  be  found  elseAA'here.  Such,  for  instance,  is  the 
portrait  in  profile  of  a  young  man,  by  that  GioA^anni 
Santi,  Raphael's  father,  of  Avhom  our  biographers 
have  not  failed  to  make  a  mediocre  painter,  in  order 


346  EOME. 

to  enhance  the  genras  of  the  son.  Unluckily,  the 
works  of  Santi  are  very  rare,  but  they  are  generally 
of  a  warm  and  vigorous  coloring  for  pictures  of  such 
exquisite  finish:  the  Giovinetto  of  the  Colonna  Palace 
unites  to  the  delicate  drawing  of  a  Francia  the  deep 
coloring  of  a  Venetian.  Among  those  pictures  which 
are  sure  to  attract  all  eyes,  one  cannot  help  naming 
the  Madonna  and  Child  of  Botticelli,  and  the  same 
subject  with  S.  John,  by  Giulio  Romano,  two  works 
of  rare  value  ;  the  latter  of  them  has  the  charm  of  a 
Raphael  of  the  second  period.  Near  a  small  portrait 
of  Maria  Mancini,  of  a  beauty  that  explains  the  youth- 
fid  ardor  of  Lewis  XIV.,  is  a  Last  Judgment  executed 
by  Pietro  of  Cortona  expressly  for  the  Colonna  family; 
a  most  comical  idea  is  presented  in  it  with  the  great- 
est gravity.  You  see  emerging  from  their  tombs  all 
the  heroes  of  the  race  down  to  Philip  Colonna,  who 
was  twice  married :  Lucrezia,  his  first  wife,  seems 
outraged  on  her  return  to  the  light  to  see  rising  by 
her  side  another  and  a  younger  wife  ;  but  an  angel 
intervenes  to  explain  the  matter  to  her,  while  Philip 
Colonna,  triumphant  yet  embarrassed,  casts  an  oblique 
glance  to  see  how  it  will  end. 

A  lively  portrait  of  this  same  Isabel  Colonna  by 
Pietro  Novelli,  who  has  represented  her  on  foot  Avith 
her  rosy-colored  child  rosily  dressed,  does  still  more 
to  justify  the  posthumous  jealousies  of  Lucrezia,  whom 
Van  Dyck  in  another  picture  has  armed  in  warlike 
guise,  to  contest  her  charms  before  posterity.      Clad 


Portrait  of  Maria  Mancini,  G.  Netscher 


THE  COLONNA  GALLERY.  347 

in  black  like  her  rival,  and  with  an  expressive  head 
framed  in  a  heavy  frill,  the  lady  as  here  represented 
is  one  of  the  most  living  triumphs  of  the  Flemish 
master. 

These  masterpieces  are  at  the  end  of  the  great 
gallery  of  the  Colonna ',  discerned  from  a  distance, 
they  made  us  pass  more  quickly  than  we  shoidd 
otherwise  have  done  by  a  Paris  Bordone  and  a  Boni- 
fazio,  both  of  Avhich  are  worth  remembering  ;  also  by 
the  S.  Jerome  of  Lo  Spagna,  the  iinest  Avork  of  this 
faithful  disciple  of  Perugino  that  is  to  be  found  in 
Rome.  We  were  constrained,  however,  to  salute  in 
passing  a  fine  Palma  {rara  avis) ;  then  two  pre-emi- 
nent portraits,  one  by  Paul  Veronese  and  the  other 
by  Titian.  The  latter  represents  Onofrio  Panvinio, 
the  historian  of  Roman  antiquities,  a  pensive  face 
whence  the  life  radiates  from  under  a  pale  and  trans- 
parent flesh-tint.  As  we  were  going  away,  we  were 
arrested  by  Lorenzo  Colonna,  brother  of  Martin  V., 
who  held  us  fixed  beneath  his  glance  :  it  is  Master 
Holbein  who  placed  this  gentleman  in  our  Avay.  His 
tawny  beard  mingles  with  the  furs  of  a  robe,  and 
from  his  features  life  shines  tranquilly  out.  Contrary 
to  custom,  the  search  for  the  real  does  not  in  this  por- 
trait end  In  dryness  ;  the  painting  is  rich  and  poAver- 
ful,  and  as  the  proportions  are  correct,  the  color  as- 
sumes a  deep  brilliance.  I  haA^e  ncA^cr  seen  one  of 
Holbein's  portraits  comparable  to  this  of  Lorenzo 
Colonna. 


348  ROME. 

Established  in  1572,  after  the  battle  of  Lepanto,  to 
celebrate  the  glory  of  ]\Iarco  Antonio  Colonna,  who 
commanded  the  Christian  galleys  against  the  Turks, 
the  great  gallery  of  this  palace  reminds  one  of  that 
of  S.  Cloud,  and  still  more  of  the  gallery  of  mirrors 
at  Versailles.  The  structure  rests  on  pilasters  in 
giallo  antico  ;  medallions  and  bas-reliefs  are  displayed 
under  each  of  the  ten  great  windows,  the  spaces  be- 
tAveen  them  being  occupied  by  panoplies  of  oriental 
arms  ;  the  frescoes  along  the  arches  of  the  ceiling  tell 
the  story  of  the  Battle  of  Lepanto.  On  a  series  of 
mirrors  arranged  down  the  hall,  Mario  de'  Fiori  has 
painted  Cupids  among  the  finest  garlands  that  his 
pencil  ever  drcAv.  Add  to  all  this  elegance  and  wealth 
a  pavement  of  ancient  marbles  5  multiply  in  symmetri- 
cal proportions  the  furniture  with  its  sweeping  lines, 
the  giant  consoles  whose  slabs  of  oriental  breccia  are 
supported  by  Turks  stooping  and  in  fetters;  the 
Asiatic  cabinets  in  ivory  and  lapis  and  ebony ;  count 
up  the  statues,  the  groups,  the  portraits,  the  car- 
touches ;  and  you  Avill  have  an  idea  of  this  vast  gal- 
lery where,  as  at  S.  Cloud,  the  paintings  like  the 
portraits  form  a  part  of  the  ornamentation.  The 
more  you  look,  the  more  convinced  you  are  that  Man- 
sart  drew  his  inspiration  for  the  decoration  of  Ver- 
sailles from  the  great  hall  of  the  Colonna  Palace,  and 
what  increases  the  probability  of  this  imitation  is  the 
timidity  of  the  copy. 

Enter  the  sanctuary  :  the  Colonna  await  you  there 


THE  COLONNA  PORTRAITS.  349 

in  the  fiill-dress  of  immortality,  thanks  to  Yan  Dyck, 
who  has  painted  a  superb  equestrian  portrait  of  Carlo 
Colonna ;  to  Scipione    Gactano,  who   presents  to  us 
the  victorious   Constable ;  to  Agostino   Caracci,  who 
stands  godfather  to  the  Cardinal  Pompeo   Colonna; 
to  Sustermans,  who  has  treated  Federigo  with  a  mas- 
ter-hand ;    to   Giorgione  who,   on   a  backgromid   of 
feudal    country   with    strong   castle   and   glacis,   has 
created  the  mighty  armed  figure  of  Giacomo  Sciarra 
Colonna.      Other  pieces,  subjects  taken  from  history 
and  saintship,  give  variety  to  the  scene,  and  leave 
space  and  air  between  all   these   personages,  whose 
company  you  will   hardly  quit  Avithout  making  your 
bow  before  the  poetic  Vittoria  Colonna,  that  muse  of 
delicate   and  penetrative  loveliness.     To   reach   the 
second  vestibule  you  ascend  a  few  marble  steps;  one 
of  these,  it  is  hard  to  realize,  was  broken  during  the 
last  siege  by  a  cannon-ball  which,  having  been  dis- 
charged  from   the   Janiculum,  must,  to   reach   here, 
have  passed  straight  through  the  four  windows  of  two 
houses  divided  by  a  court,  then  entered  the  end  of 
the  gallery  and  flown  down  its  entire  length  Avithout 
encountering  an   obstacle.     Justly  promoted   to  the 
rank  of  a  curiosity,  the  projectile  has  been  fixed  in 
the  block  of  marble  which  it  indented.     Quite  close 
to  these  steps  you  find,  between  a  false  Poussin  and 
a  suspicious  Ghirlandajo,  the  8.  John  the  Baptist  of 
Salvator  Rosa,  very  curious  on  account  of  its  striking 
personality ;  it  is  the  portrait  of  the  artist,  who  took 


350  EOME. 

tills  original  pretext  for  representing  himself  naked 
in  a  wilderness. 

Two  or  three  bridges  thrown  across  the  deep  and 
narroAV  Via  della  Pilotta  connect  the  palace  and  its 
escarped  gardens,  Avhose  trees  cast  festoons  of  shad- 
ows on  the  paving  below.  The  palace,  the  ruins  two 
thousand  years  old,  the  basins  of  green  water,  and  the 
steep  walls  buried  beneath  a  cascade  of  flowers— all 
are  in  the  very  heart  of  the  town,  and  of  a  very 
populous  quarter. 

Every  one  knows  that  the  popes  enclosed  the  most 
notable  portion  of  the  Quirinal  between  the  walls  of 
the  vast  palace,  in  which  they  established  a  residence, 
if  not  for  summer,  at  least  for  the  semi-season,  and 
also  one  for  winter.  But  this  erection  of  Gregory 
XIII.,  designed  by  the  Lombard,  Flaminio  Ponzio, 
finished  under  Sixtus  V.  and  Clement  VIII.  by  Fon- 
tana,  enlarged  by  Carlo  Maderno,  completed  by  Fuga 
and  Bernini,  and  restored  under  Pius  VII. — the  work 
of  ten  pontiffs,  the  Quirinal  Palace,  did  not  untU 
quite  lately  give  its  name  to  the  piazza  which  its  prin- 
cipal facade  decorates.  In  the  middle  of  the  piazza 
a  jet  of  water  plays  in  a  basin  of  oriental  granite ; 
Pius  VII.  brought  it  thither  from  the  Forum  ;  above 
the  basin  stand  clearly  outlined  against  the  sky  two 
athletic  statues  and  two  marble  horses,  placed  there 
by  Sixtus  v.;  afterwards,  Pius  VI.  subordinated  the 
two  groups,  reducing  them  to  serve  as  accessories  to 
an  obelisk  of  red  granite,  once  posted  as  sentinel  be- 


PIAZZA  QUIKINALE.  351 

fore  the  Mausoleum  of  Augustus.  These  fine  figures, 
and  still  finer  coursers — groups  in  which  the  Quiritcs 
amused  themselves  Ly  recognizing  their  old  patrons, 
Castor  and  Pollux — these  masterpieces  attributed  to 
Praxiteles  and  Phidias,  chose  the  hill  for  their  pedes- 
tal, and  re-named  it.  Unfortunately,  they  are  cut 
out  of  a  porous  marble  which  the  damp  blackens,  and 
are  placed  too  high  to  be  efi'ective ;  the  obelisk  planted 
between  the  two  also  disperses  their  interest,  and  this 
conflict  of  precious  works  adorning  the  Piazza  Monte 
Cavallo  produces  a  discordant  effect. 

The  group  is  almost  opposite  the  window  where,  at 
the  close  of  the  papal  conclaves,  they  used  to  proclaim 
the  result. 

Seen  from  the  outside,  the  building  is  a  fairly 
handsome  barrack,  of  sober  aspect,  and  little  archi- 
tectural elegance.  Ample  staircases,  an  enormous 
court  of  cloistered  appearance,  peculiarly  arranged 
gardens^ — such  is  the  aspect  of  the  Quirinal. 

When  the  popes  inhabited  it  each  room  had  its 
special  purpose ;  one  saw  in  all  this  multitude  of 
minute  arrangements,  a  pitiless  etiquette,  which  only 
made  a  slave  and  a  victim  of  the  prince  who  was 
bound  to  submit  to  it,  and  to  keep  it  up.  There  was 
not  a  cabinet,  nor  a  private  corridor,  nor  a  secret 
staircase  ;  the  palace  was  transparent  ;  only  the 
patience  of  a  monk  and  the  innocence  of  a  dove  could 
have  acclimatized  themselves  in  this  great  cage,  Avhose 
bars  were  hidden  under  all  manner  of  representations 


352  EOME. 

of  free  life  and  power  portrayed  in  tapestries,  pre- 
sented by  various  princes.  Our  Gobelins,  under 
Lewis  XIV.  and  Lewis  XV.  furnished  the  best  pieces; 
all  Jean  Jouvenet  went  there  5  Napoleon  IIL  only 
figured  in  the  copy  of  a  Ilibera.  Li  front  of  these 
hangings  shone  great  imperial  vases  from  China;  but 
the  seats  were  of  wood,  waxed  and  polished  as  in  the 
parlor  of  a  hospital.  As  they  chose  the  subjects  of 
the  decorative  paintings  from  the  Holy  Scriptures, 
you  seemed  to  be  going  throiigh  a  suite  of  Florentine 
or  Sienese  sacristies,  too  freely  and  tawdrily  deco- 
rated. The  severity  of  the  cloister  shrunk  from  the 
use  of  mirrors  and  glasses,  but  the  chimney-pieces 
had  panels  of  porphyry  and  rosso  antico,  as  well  as 
bronze  bas-reliefs. 

There  were  also  a  few  good  pictures,  two  very  fine 
figures  of  Fra  Bartolommeo,  S.  Peter  and  S.  Paul, 
produced  in  1514  under  the  influence  of  Michael  An- 
gelo,  at  a  time  when  our  monk  came  to  make  the  pil- 
grimage to  the  Sixtine  chapel.  The  S.  Paul,  which 
is  the  better  of  the  tAvo,  has  some  analogy  with  the 
Isaiah  of  Sanzio,  that  young  friend  of  a  too  impres- 
sionable artist.  Delia  Porta  left  the  S.  Peter  un- 
finished, and  Raphael  completed  it:  the  contemptu- 
ousness  of  Leo  X.  had  repidsed  Fra  Bartolommeo.  I 
remember  also  a  chamber  where  Overbeck  decorated 
a  ceiling,  but  which  has  associations  of  far  more  in- 
terest ;  this  is  the  room  in  which  Pius  IX.  received 
the  envoys  of  the  Revolution,  and  in  which  nearly 


S.  MARIA  DEGLI  ANGELL  353 

half  a  century  before  Pius  VII.  had  been  arrested — 
two  painful  reminiscences. 

The  gardens  of  this  great  convent  turned  into  a 
residence  for  the  sovereign  pontiffs,  was  furnished 
with  terraces,  statues,  fountains,  clipped  avenues, 
parterres  cut  into  arabesques,  architectural  arbors, 
and  a  flaunting  kiosk  which  Fuga  erected  to  serve  as 
a  buffet,  in  which  the  holy  father  in  the  midst  of  the 
landscapes  of  Battoni  and  Orizonte  offered  sherbet 
and  coffee  to  the  grandees  of  this  world. 

There  came  certain  days  when  the  sleepy,  grass- 
grown  Quirinal  saw  the  carriages  and  rich  liveries  of 
the  prelates  rolling  up  one  after  another  in  front  of  its 
walls.  Then  the  palace  transformed  into  an  hotel  for 
cardinals,  was  surrounded  each  evening  by  a  motley 
populace  of  twenty  nationalities,  who  with  eyes  fixed 
on  a  large  balcony,  awaited  the  name  of  the  master 
whom  the  conclave  had  chosen  for  themselves,  to 
launch  it  on  the  echoes  of  the  whole  world.* 

The  Via  di  Porta  Pia,t  a  continuation  of  that  of 
the  Quirinal,  will  take  us  to  the  church  of  S.  Maria 
degli  Angeli.  Buonarotti  was  over  eighty  when  he 
took  it  into  his  head  to  plant  in  the  rotunda  of  the 
Thermae  of  Diocletian  a  church,  the  building  of  wdiich 

*  The  Quirinal  Palace,  now  the  Palazzo  Regio,  was  taken  pos- 
session of  by  the  Italian  Government  after  the  20th  of  September, 
1870,  and  is  now  the  residence  of  the  king.  Pius  IX.  never  oc- 
cupied it  after  his  flight  to  Caeta  in  1848.  Victor  Emmanuel  II. 
died  there  in  1878.     The  conclave  now  meets  in  the  Vatican. 

t  Now  Via  Venii  Settembre. 

23 


354  EOME. 

he  had  been  intrusted  with  by  Pius  IV.  He  accord- 
ingly raised  the  floor  of  the  temple  twelve  feet,  at  the 
same  time  preserving  the  eight  enormous  monolithic 
columns  of  Egyptian  granite  Avhich  supported  the  en- 
tablature, and  facing  the  bases  with  marble. 

It  was  to  S.  Maria  degli  Angeli  that  they  brought, 
after  adroitly  carrying  it  off  from  S.  Peter's  and  sub- 
stituting for  it  a  mosaic  copy,  Zampieri's  Martyrdom 
of  S.  Sebastian  ;  the  saint,  the  angels,  and  the  Christ 
appearing  in  the  heavens,  are  most  magisterial  fig- 
ures ;  in  the  foreground  is  a  group  of  women  and  of 
common  people  trampled  on  by  the  cavalry,  while 
they  strangle  the  martyr ;  a  veritable  masterpiece  of 
movement  and  execution.  You  pass  this  in  order  to 
reach  the  famous  cloister,  one  of  the  largest  that 
exists. 

In  the  centre  of  the  portions,  with  its  hundred  pil- 
lars of  travertine,  four  enormous,  time-tossed  cy- 
presses, which  Michael  Angelo  planted,  hide  the  edge 
of  the  tomb-like  well :  the  distant  lines  of  the  low  gal- 
leries against  a  blue  sky  give  to  these  sombre  giants 
colossal  dimensions.  The  square  of  the  court  is  a 
kitchen  garden,  in  which  smile  some  Bengal  roses, 
but  nothing  interferes  with  the  grave  and  silent 
poetry  of  an  enclosure  consecrated  to  meditation. 

Let  us  now  follow  the  street  of  the  Quattro  Fon- 
tane,  as  far  as  our  church  of  the  Trinita  de'  Monti, 
built  on  the  Pincian  in  1494  by  Charles  VIII.  for  the 
brethren  of  S.  Francesco  de  Paolo.     It  is  a  mediocre 


THE  SPANISH  STAIRS.  355 

building,  but  with  a  somewhat  imposing  appearance  ; 
to  preserve  a  favorable  idea  of  it,  confine  yourself  as 
long  as  possible  to  looking  at  the  outside,  especially 
from  the  Piazza  di  Spagna,  where  it  crowns  a  mag- 
nificent staircase.  As  you  issue  from  that  cosmopoli- 
tan street  baptized  by  the  subterranean  conduits 
{condotfi)  of  the  Acqua  Vergine,  }  ou  are  dazzled  by 
the  cascade  of  steps,  surmounted  by  two  encorbelled 
terraces,  which  in  turn  are  crowned  by  an  obelisk 
and  the  church.  These  stairs,  designed  by  A.  Spec- 
chi  and  completed  by  De'  Sanctis,  are  not  due,  as  is 
so  constantly  said,  to  a  M.  Gouffier,  our  ambassador; 
France  never  sent  to  the  popes  any  ambassador  of 
that  name.  It  was  Cardinal  Melchior  de  Polignac 
who,  when  French  minister  at  the  court  of  Benedict 
Xni.,  utilized  and  augmented  by  two-thirds  a  sum 
that  had  been  left  in  1632  for  this  purpose  by  one  of 
his  predecessors,  Gueffier — a  sum  that  had  remained 
unemployed  up  to  this  time,  because  it  was  insuffi- 
cient :  the  princely  structure  was  not  completed  imtil 
1725. 

The  foot  of  the  steps  is  marked  by  a  grotesque 
fountain,  the  Barcaccia,  which  is  erroneously  attrib- 
uted by  some  of  our  writers  to  Bernini,  whereas  it 
is  really  the  work  of  his  father,  Pietro  Bernini,  whose 
adventurous  spirit  led  him  to  seek  his  fortune  in  the 
region  of  Naples.  The  fomitain  consists  of  a  smaU 
boat,  foundered  in  a  basin  on  a  level  with  the  ground; 
in  the  middle  of  the  barque  is  a  vase  from  which  a 


356  EOME. 

jet  of  water  shoots  up.  The  design  lacks  common 
sense,  only  the  defect  is  so  obvious  as  not  to  be  Avorth 
demonstrating.  The  object  of  the  Barcaccia  is  to  re- 
call a  memorable  circumstance  :  towards  1624  the 
waters  of  the  Tiber,  passing  through  the  whole  city 
and  invading  the  Corso  and  the  adjoining  streets, 
mounted  to  the  foot  of  the  Pincian,  and  a  barque  was 
moored  at  the  bottom  of  the  Piazza  di  Spagna.* 

On  the  Piazza  di  Spagna,  in  front  of  the  College 
of  the  Propaganda,  the  nursery  of  missionaries  for 
barbarous  countries,  rises  the  column  of  the  Immaco- 
lata,  erected  in  honor  of  the  dogma  of  the  Immaculate 
Conception  first  promidgated  in  1854.  They  used 
for  this  purpose  a  shaft  of  Carystian  marble,  exhumed 
in  1778  from  the  Piazza  Campo  Marzio. 

Everybody  has  ascended  a  hundred  times  the  slope 
leading  from  the  piazza  to  which  the  palace  of  the 
Spanish  ambassadors  has  given  its  name,  to  the  Villa 
Medici  a;id  the  Pincian  Gardens.  In  proportion  as 
you  rise,  you  see  the  facade  of  the  Trinita  de'  Monti 
lessen ;  it  is  cut  in  two  by  a  little  obelisk  planted  in 
front  of  the  portico,  where  it  tries  to  make  itself  big 
by  the  aid  of  a  pedestal  which  is  too  long. 

Close  by  the  steps  of  the  church,  two  popes  have 
displayed  their  arms ;  first  is   an   enormous   capital 

*  Hare  says  that  the  design  of  this  fountain  commemorates  the 
''Naumachia  of  Domitian,   naval  battles  which  took  place  in 
....  a  kind  of  theatre  which   once  occupied  the  site  of  this 
piazza." — Walks  in  Home,  p.  46. 


TKINITA  DE'  MONTI.  357 

taken  from  some  temple  of  the  third  century ;  and  on 
this  capital  is  fastened  a  tombstone,  as  the  same  thing 
has  been  done  on  the  other  side,  this  bit  of  bric-a- 
brac  is  an  agreeable  ornament  to  the  space  from  which 
the  Via  Gregoriana  and  the  Via  Sistina  branch  out, 
separated  by  the  house  where  Claude  Lorraine  lived, 
ten  steps  from  that  inhabited  by  Salvator  Rosa,  and 
near  that  of  Nicholas  Poussin.  These  three  sanctu- 
aries guard  the  approach  to  the  terrace,  which  ends 
in  our  academy  of  painting  and  the  Pincian  Gardens. 
This  park  extends  to  the  end  of  the  hill,  and  descends 
to  the  Piazza  del  Popolo,  Avhich  used  to  flaunt  so 
gaily  on  the  festival  of  the  Madonna,  when,  entering 
the  city  in  gorgeous  procession  by  the  bridge  of  S. 
Angelo,  the  carriage  of  the  sovereign  pontiff,  pre- 
ceded by  the  cross-bearer  on  a  caparisoned  mule, 
issued  out  of  the  Via  di  Ripetta  on  its  way  to  S.  Maria 
del  Popolo. 

The  Trinita  de'  Monti  and  the  old  convent  of  the 
Minimes  are  occupied  by  the  nuns  of  the  Sacre  Coeur; 
a  fine  establishment,  with  most  extensive  grounds. 
The  pupils  wander  innocently  among  gardens  where 
Messalina  once  took  her  pleasure  ;  and  chatter  where 
Galileo  used  to  dream,  when,  after  being  condemned 
by  the  holy  office,  this  great  man  Avas  honorably  in- 
stalled by  the  ambassador  of  Tuscany  in  the  palace 
of  the  Grand  Dukes. 

Nearly  every  morning  I  passed  in  front  of  the 
Trinita,  on  my  way  either  to  the  Pincian  for  a  view 


358  KOME. 

of  the  hills  lighted  up  by  the  rising  sun,  or  to  the 
Villa  Medici,  at  the  approaches  to  which  the  artists 
always  find  some  damsels  from  the  fields  clad  in  rustic 
attire  awaiting  them,  samples  of  local  color  for  the  use 
of  the  studios.  There  used  often  to  plant  herself,  a 
ravishing  creature,  whom  our  students  did  their  best 
to  see  with  the  eyes  of  Leonardo — the  Pascuccia, 
whose  wide  black  eyes  and  Avaving  hair  I  have  sub- 
sequently beheld  on  many  a  canvas. 


CASTELLANI'rf  ESTABLISHMENT.  359 


CHAPTER    XVIII. 

Close  to  the  Fontana  Trevi  we  may  take  the  op- 
portunity of  visiting  a  really  unique  industrial  estab- 
lishment. Art  is  its  object,  and  ai'chiBological  studies 
were  the  foundation  of  a  business  which  offers  to  the 
public  objects  in  the  taste  and  fashion  of  the  remotest 
ages  of  antiquity.  From  the  jewels  of  Assyina, 
Egypt,  and  Greece,  that  he  exhumed  and  studied, 
the  goldsmith  Castellani  deduced  a  kind  of  work 
which  was  so  vastly  old  as  to  seem  quite  new,  and 
which  promptly  produced  its  own  school ;  his  shops 
contain  a  rare  collection,  formed  by  a  man  of  techni- 
cal skill  both  as  amateur  and  dealer.  From  the  very 
entrance  he  overpowers  you  ;  his  staircase  is  a  mu- 
seum of  odds  and  ends  set  in  the  walls.  Pieces  of 
inscriptions,  mutilated  bas-reliefs,  lions  and  panthers 
from  cabinets,  heraldic  wolves  without  head  or  tail, 
detritus  of  the  sarcophagi ;  he  has  utilized  everything, 
and  all  serve  to  prepare  ingenuous  nabobs  for  the 
splendors  of  transcendent  art-work.  Besides,  Cas- 
tellani has  furnished  credentials  as  to  his  knowledge 
of  his  art  ;  and  his  little  books  on  the  Jewellery  of 
the  Ancients  and  on  Primitive  Civilization  have  been 
placed  by  the  papal  government  in  -the  Index. 


360  KOME. 

This  collection  of  antique  jewels,  both  from  the 
east  and  the  peoples  of  old  Latium,  is  really  of  ines- 
timable value.  Tombs  have  given  up  entire  parures; 
necklaces,  bracelets,  rings,  ear-rings,  brooches  ;  there 
are  some  Tuscan  gems,  marvels  going  back  possibly 
to  the  Pelasgians.  There  are  Etruscan  mirrors  on 
which  engravings  of  fairy  delicacy  contain  figured 
scenes  from  the  Iliad  and  the  Odyssey  :  there  is  a 
Torques,  of  most  skilful  workmanship  ;  a  vase  of 
Tyrrhenian  silver,  stamped  with  ornaments  mixed 
with  chimerical  animals,  and  with  a  handle  of  miracu- 
lous finish.  Among  these  masterpieces,  the  jewellery 
of  Greece  is  inferior  to  that  of  Egypt ;  Babylon  is 
superior  to  Memphis,  and  the  aborigines  of  Latium 
to  the  jeAvellers  of  Athens ;  it  is  the  half-fabulous 
nations  from  whom  you  must  ask  the  secret  of  per- 
fection. 

Castellani  had  travelled  through  Europe  and  Asia 
trying  to  discover  the  method  of  soldering  employed 
by  the  jewellers  of  old,  and  Avhich  enabled  them  to 
incorporate  the  most  microscopic  ornaments  by  an  in- 
visible junction  in  an  enamelled  surface.  One  day 
during  the  carnival  he  fell  in  with  a  peasant  girl  on 
the  Corso,  who  had  in  her  ears  barqiiettes  like  those 
of  the  Etruscan  tombs  He  questioned  her  as  to  their 
origin,  and  found  that  they  had  been  made  by  a  vil- 
lage artificer  in  the  heart  of  the  Sabine  Hills.  It  was 
in  the  workshop  of  this  obscure  craftsman  that  he 
found   the  lost  ai>t  of  Etruscan  soldering,  thus  per- 


Avenue  of  the  Villa  Medici 


YLLLX  MEDICI.  361 

petuated  by  tradition  for  between  twenty-five  and 
thirty-five  centuries.  The  copies  due  to  Castellani's 
perseverance,  and  for  the  production  of  which  he  has 
had  to  invent  a  special  set  of  instruments,  are  scarcely 
less  miraculous  than  the  Sabellian  originals. 

From  Castellani's  let  us  ascend  the  Pincian,  and 
visit  the  Villa  Medici. 

Elevated  on  the  hill  whence  it  dominates  cjty  and 
fields,  the  Villa  Medici,  which  you  see  from  all  sides, 
is  crowned  by  two  pavilions  rising  above  a  broad  and 
clear  facade.  From  the  side  which  faces  towards 
Kome,  the  building  has  a  cold  look ;  large  windows 
of  tolerable  simplicity,  a  very  high  doorway  crowned 
by  a  balcony — such  is  the  unostentatious  arrange- 
ment adopted  in  1540  by  Annibale  Lippi,  Avhen 
he  erected  the  palace  for  Cardinal  Montepulciano. 
This  soberness  was  well  conceived,  especially  if  at 
the  time  they  intended  making  the  opposite  side  a 
gem  of  architecture  enriched  by  a  collection  of  bas- 
reliefs,  the  precious  fragments  of  antique  sculpture. 
This  fagade,  with  its  portico  sustained  on  splendid 
columns  and  guarded  by  lions,  contrasts  vividly  with 
the  other,  of  Avhich  the  design  has^  without  the  slight- 
est proof,  been  attributed  to  Michael  Angelo. 

It  is  probable,  moreover,  that  the  plan  Avas  modified 
when  Cardinal  Alessandro  de  Medici  acquired  pos- 
session of  it,  and  gave  it  his  name.  He  amused  him- 
self by  decorating  it  in  the  few  periods  of  leisure 
which  he  was  allowed  under  Clement  VIII.  from  the 


362  EOME. 

negotiations  with  which  he  Avas  charged  at  the  courts 
of  various  sovereigns,  among  others  that  of  the  Bear- 
nais,  Henry  IV.  On  the  death  of  Aldobrandini,  the 
cardinal  having  been  chosen  pope  on  the  1st  of  April, 
1605,  he  took  the  name  of  Leo  XI.,  and  died  only 
twenty-seven  days  after,  leaving  as  many  regrets  as 
he  had  inspired  hopes.  The  Cardinal  de'  Medici 
commenced  collections  which  under  the  Florentine 
sovereigns  continued  to  enrich  the  villa  on  the  Pin- 
cian :  on  the  vase  placed  in  front  of  the  steps  was 
once  seen  the  Mercury  of  John  of  Bologna ;  a  docu- 
ment recently  published  informs  us  that  in  1671  the 
young  Marquis  of  Seignelay  admired  in  these  gardens 
Cleopatra,  Ganymede,  and  Marsyas,  as  well  as  Niobe 
Avith  her  fourteen  children.  It  was  Cosmo  III.  who, 
towards  the  end  of  his  interminable  reign,  despoiled 
the  Roman  viUa  for  the  benefit  of  his  gallery  of  the 
Uffizi  at  Florence  ;  the  deserted  husband  of  Margaret, 
of  Orleans  died  an  octogenarian  in  1723. 

At  this  period  our  school  of  painting  was  installed 
in  the  Corso  in  the  palace  of  Nevers,  so  called  after 
Philip  Julian  Mancini.  Mazarin's  nephew  inherited 
the  duchy  of  Nevers,  which  his  uncle  had  bought  in 
1660  ;  he  was  the  brother  of  the  cardinal's  pretty 
nieces.  When  the  twelve  scholars  of  Charles  Errard, 
the  first  director  of  the  Academy  which  had  been 
founded  at  the  suggestion  of  Colbert,  had  been  safely 
sheltered  in  the  Corso,  their  chief  lost  no  time  in  re- 
turning to  Paris,  Coy  pel  having  replaced  him  in  1672. 


THE  FEENCH  ACADEMY.  363 

Two  years  before  that,  the  same  Errard,  painter  and 
architect,  completed  the  construction  of  our  church 
of  the  Assumption  and  its  unsuccessful  cupola.  Thej 
had  chosen  this  artist  to  inaugurate  the  new  institu- 
tion, on  the  ground  that  he  knew  Rome,  whither 
Richelieu,  resuming  by  the  advice  of  Poussin  a  pro- 
ject of  Francis  I.,  had  sent  him  to  collect  works  of 
art  for  France,  and  have  copies  and  casts  made  in  the 
interests  of  our  national  studies.  Charles  Errard  Avas 
from  Nantes ;  he  returned  to  die  at  Rome  in  1689,  at 
the  age  of  eighty -three. 

De  Troy  (1738),  Natoire  (1751),  and  Vien  (1774) 
each  in  turn  brought  his  ability  to  bear  on  the  direc- 
torial duties,  which  at  the  outset  of  the  Revolution 
were  exercised  by  the  allegorical  and  graceful  Mena- 
geot ;  a  bond  of  union  between  the  school  of  Boucher 
and  the  reforms  of  Vien  his  second  master.  In  1722 
LcAvis  XVI.  appointed  Joseph  Benedict  Suvee,  born 
at  Bruges  in  1743,  and  Avho  had  gained  the  chief 
prize  in  1771,  to  the  directorship,' but  this  estimable 
artist  had  not  time  to  start  before  the  10th  of  August: 
he  was  cast  into  the  prisons  of  the  Terror,  while  the 
Academy  of  France  at  Rome  was  suppressed. 

Suvee  did  not  arrive  at  his  post  until  1801,  when 
our  schools  were  re-organized  by  the  First  Consid ; 
it  was  then,  by  negotiations  of  which  he  Avas  the 
soul,  that  this  adopted  son  of  France  endowed  her 
with  the  most  magnificent  domain  she  possesses 
abroad :  he  died  in  1807  in  the  establishment  whose 


364  ROME. 

royal  aspect  adds  marked  lustre  to  our  school.  To 
obtain  the  transference  to  the  Academy  of  the  Fine 
Arts  in  1803  of  this  inheritance  of  the  Medici,  Suvee 
had  many  obstacles  to  surmount ;  but  after  making  sure 
that  the  purpose  of  the  building  could  not  be  changed, 
he  did  not  hesitate  to  add  to  the  insufficient  resources 
of  the  state,  his  personal  fortune,  which  being  nearly 
entirely  sunk  there,  determines  the  use  of  the  Villa 
Medici,  if  not  for  ever,  at  least  so  long  as  our  country 
shall  jDreserve  any  respect  for  engagements  contracted 
in  her  name. 

The  principal  directors  at  the  Villa  Medici  since 
the  beginning  of  the  century  have  been  Guerin,  Avho 
was  more  remarkable  as  professor  than  as  painter, 
and  Horace  Vernet,  who  had  more  prestige  than  in- 
fluence, and  who  poured  some  of  his  own  popularity 
over  the  Academy.  He  was  administrator  from  1828 
to  1834,  and  was  replaced  by  Ingres,  who  for  six 
years  had  extreme  influence  over  our  laureates 

The  most  remarkable  of  the  domestic  apartments 
is  the  dining-room,  adjoining  a  kitchen  whence  issues 
that  disturbing  and  too-familiar  odor  we  meet  with  in 
lyceums  and  boarding-houses.  This  fine  refectory  is 
vaulted^  and  the  arch  has  been  divided  into  compart- 
ments, in  which  since  1811  the  portraits  of  our 
laureates  have  been  placed  by  their  comrades :  a 
brotherly  idea,  but  which  too  often  suggests  melancholy 
reflections,  for  hoAV  many  are  unknoAvn  among  these 
laurelled  heads  !     Independently  of  the  bad  taste  that 


THE  FRENCH  ACADEMY.  365 

belongs  to  every  period  of  fashion,  two  things  struck 
me — how  uncommon  are  even  passable  portraits,  and 
how  rare  on  these  young  brows  is  the  luminous  halo 
of  youth.  One  of  the  most  extraordinary  is  Hector 
Berlioz,  with  high  tufts  of  hair  over  the  head  of  a 
cock,  strangled  in  a  cravat  half  a  foot  high.  In  the 
features  of  F.  Halevy,  nearly  a  child  in  appearance, 
we  have  some  trouble  in  recognizing  the  amiable  and 
saddened  man,  Avho  bore  with  visible  resignation  the 
burden  of  his  life.  Ambrose  Thomas  (by  Flandrin) 
and  Francis  Bazin  are  the  models  whom  years  did 
least  to  alter ;  one  of  the  masterpieces  of  the  gallery 
is  the  profile  of  a  musician  painted  by  M.  Henner. 
Among  these  likenesses,  the  epic  laureates  of  1812 
and  the  romanticists  of  1827  have,  the  one  a  sombre 
mien  a  la  Curtius,  the  others  Byronic  expressions, 
which  look  ridiculous  to  the  more  citizen-like  realists 
of  our  ovm  day.  I  may  add  that  the  establishment 
possesses  a  library,  which  is  treated  by  the  majority 
of  these  gentlemen  with  a  respectful  consideration. 

If  it  had  no  other  advantages  than  that  of  isolating 
in  a  spot  where  horizons  expand  and  even  silence  is 
eloquent,  a  number  of  young  men  who  at  home  woidd 
be  weighted  by  the  triple  burden  of  outside  interests, 
bad  examples,  and  dangerous  pleasures,  the  Academy 
of  France  Avould  still  be  an  advantage. 

There  is  something  which  must  be  ineffaceable, 
gained  by  merely  living  for  five  years  away  from  the 
commands  of  fashion  and  breathing  the  same  air  with 


366  ROME. 

the  marbles  of  Greece  and  the  creations  of  Raphael 
and  Michael  Angelo  ;  in  having  contemplated  for  that 
space  of  time  the  beautiful  under  the  horizons  of 
Rome,  and  having  absorbed  the  aroma  of  her  majesty ; 
in  having  passed  through  the  decisive  phases  of  youth 
in  the  shade  of  the  gardens  where  Armida  is  replaced 
by  study,  and  where,  as  in  the  Elysium  of  the  poets, 
you  have  daily  intercourse  with  the  great  masters  of 
the  world,  and  can  almost  hear  them  speak  on  their 
own  hearth-stones. 


THE  LEGEND  OF  S.  LAURENTIUS.  367 


CHAPTER    XIX. 

In  the  days  when  the  Emperor  Valerian  was 
chastising  the  Christians  at  Rome,  the  pontifical  see 
was  filled  by  an  old  man  who  was  a  native  of  Athens, 
honored  under  the  name  of  S.  Sixtus  :  he  was  put  to 
death  in  259,  as  his  predecessor  Stephen  had  been 
two  years  before.  As  he  went  to  his  execution,  a 
young  deacon  followed  close  behind,  and  cried  to 
him  with  many  tears,  ''  WiU  you  go  without  your 
son  f  Shall  I  not  help  you  once  more  in  this  last 
sacrifice  I"  "  My  son,"  replied  the  old  man,  "  thou 
slialt  rejoin  me  in  three  days." 

The  deacon  who  thus  invited  martyrdom  was  called 
Laurentius.  Sixtus  II.  had  intrusted  to  him  the 
treasures  of  the  church,  but  when  he  found  himself 
being  dragged  to  the  pra^torium,  he  bade  him  sell  the 
sacred  vessels  and  divide  the  price  of  them  among 
the  poor.  The  bishop  having  been  slain,  the  prefect 
enjoined  on  the  deacon  to  surrender  all  the  riches  of 
the  church  to  the  ^rarium.  Laurentius  begged  for 
some  hours  in  which  to  collect  them,  and  finally  re- 
appeared with  a  crowd  of  mendicants  in  his  train. 
"  Behold,"  he  said,  "  the  treasures  of  the  children  of 
Christ!" 


368  ROME. 

Taking  for  mockery  these  words  which  he  could 
not  rightly  understand,  the  prefect  commanded  that 
the  young  Laurentius  should  be  beaten  with  rods  ; 
then  he  had  him  stretched  all  bleeding  over  a  grid- 
iron heated  red-hot  by  live  coals.  His  courage  and 
gentleness  appeared  so  superhuman,  that  many  people 
were  converted  to  the  Christian  faith  by  seeing  this 
execution,  which  took  place  on  the  10th  of  August, 
the  fourth  day  after  the  death  of  S.  Sixtus,  as  he  had 
foretold. 

In  the  sixth  century  S.  Laurentius  extra  Muros, 
one  of  the  patriarchal  basilicas,  was  half-buried;  Pope 
Pelagius  had  it  disinterred  and  enlarged,  leaving  the 
apse,  at  the  foot  of  which  rest  the  remains  of  the 
deacon,  in  the  centre  of  the  church.  Towards  1216 
Honorius  III.  raised  the  presbyterium,  the  founda- 
tions of  which  were  to  a  large  extent  filled  up.  Pius 
IX.  disengaged  the  eight  fluted  columns  with  Corin- 
thian capitals  of  the  Constantinian  basilica,  to  which 
Pelagius  had  added  two  pillars  crowned  with  trophies 
and  figures,  and  resting  on  bases  adorned  with  rosettes 
and  crosses.  It  is  to  Pope  Honorius  that  we  owe  the 
fine  mosaic  which,  on  the  arch  of  the  vault,  repre- 
sents on  one  side  S.  Laurentius  and  Pope  Pelagius  II. 
led  before  the  Saviour  by  S.  Peter,  and  on  the  other 
S.  Paul  between  S.  Stephen  and  S.  Hippolytus, 
draped  in  white.  The  Christ  is  seated  on  the  globe; 
Bethlehem  and  Jerusalem,  his  cradle  and  his  tomb,  are 
drawn  at  each  end  of  this  important  work.     The  effect 


S.  LAURENTIUS  EXTRA  MUROS.  369 

of  the  piilpits,  which  Innocent  III.  decorated  with  panels 
of  red  porphyry  and  green  serpentine,  is  heightened 
by  settings  of  small  mosaic.  Rome  possesses  noth- 
ing of  this  sort  which  combines  so  much  charm  with 
so  much  simplicity.  The  choir  having  been  freed  by 
Pius  IX.  from  the  rubbish  which  encumbered  it,  they 
had  to  support  it  on  a  colonnade,  which  upholds  a 
ceiling  of  modern  taste  and  out  of  harmony  with  the 
style  of  the  church ;  this  space  isolates  the  tomb  of 
S.  Laurentius,  which  you  discern  in  shadow  through  a 
gilded  grating.  At  the  corners  of  the  basilica  they 
found  walled-up  doors,  Avhich  continued  the  aisles 
through  the  Catacombs. 

It  happened  that  the  illustrious  author  of  Boma 
Sotterranea,  ]M,  de'  Rossi  (who  did  me  the  honor  to 
explain  8.  Laurentius  extra  Muros  to  me)  having  one 
day  gone  down  to  the  bottom  of  an  unexplored  ceme- 
tery at  a  considerable  distance  out  in  the  plain,  and 
lost  himself,  began  to  walk  on,  trusting  to  accident  to 
find  an  outlet,  when  finally  he  heard  with  amazement 
the  sound  of  religious  singing  accompanied  by  an 
organ.  He  pushed  on,  thrust  himself  against  a  door 
which  Avas  rotten  and  blocked  up,  and  having  suc- 
ceeded in  forcing  a  way,  found  himself  to  his  own 
stupefaction  in  the  basilica  of  S.  Laurentius.  These 
labyrinths  fill  the  imagination  with  the  most  terrify- 
ing ideas:  they  tell  the  story  of  one  archaeologist  who, 
having  lost  himself  three  miles  from  Rome  in  a  maze 
of  the  cemetery  of  S.   Agnese,  wandered  in  despair 

2i 


370  ROME. 

all  through  a  night  of  forty  hours  between  two  hedges 
of  tombs,  and  finally  returned  to  the  light  of  day 
under  the  Trinita  de'  Monti,  in  front  of  an  air-hole 
in  the  Piazza  di  Spagna.  Everybody  remembers  the 
adventure  of  Hubert  Robert,  which  has  been  versi- 
fied by  the  Abbe  Delille.  The  Laurentian  basilica 
has  been  planted  so  deep  in  the  Catacombs,  that 
niches  and  pieces  of  wall  painted  in  the  third  century 
still  exist  in  the  church ;  even  under  the  burial-place 
of  S.  Laurentius  there  is  a  third  tier  of  Loculi. 

This  basilica,  one  of  the  five  cathedrals  of  the 
pontifical  Roman  bishopric,  possesses  in  the  centre  of 
its  presbyterium  an  antique  and  massive  episcopal 
chair,  which  was  decorated  in  125-1:  with  two  grace- 
ful torse  columns,  was  edged  with  fine  mosaics,  and 
was  set  in  a  facing  of  marble,  with  porphyry  cofi'er- 
work  framed  with  gems.  We  cannot  omit  to  men- 
tion the  ornamentation  of  a  monument,  on  w^hich  so 
many  centuries  have  left  their  traces.  The  scidp- 
tured  debris  of  palaces  and  temples,  entablatures  pre- 
served from  the  primitive  basilica,  are  supported  on 
twelve  antique  columns  of  violet  marble  with  Corin- 
thian capitals.  The  upper  gallery  forms  a  square 
enclosure,  resting  on  twelve  other  small  columns  with 
Ionic  capitals,  also  fluted,  and  composed  of  a  green- 
ish granite  from  Egypt,  the  rarest  in  the  world. 

To  close  the  sketch  of  this  church,  let  us  not  for- 
get under  its  vast  porch  forty  frescoes  of  the  thir- 
teenth century,  setting  forth  the  legends  of  S.  Laur- 


Basilica  of  S.  Lorenzo  Fuori  Le  Mura 


S.  LAURENTIUS  EXTRA  MUROS.  371 

entius,  S.  Hippoly  tus,  and  that  other  saint  who  perished 
nine  months  after  the  Saviour— S.  Stephen,  the  first 
martyr,  and  the  second  to  pray  for  his  executioners. 
When  in  the  year  415,  the  remains  of  Stephen  were 
dug  out  from  the  field  of  Gamahel,  the  Roman  deacon 
Laurentius,  and  Stephen  the  archdeacon  of  Jerusalem 
— S.  Irenseus  gives  him  this  title — were  laid  together 
under  the  altar  of  S.  Laurentius  without  the  walls. 
The  frescoes  are  extremely  curious  in  the  action  and 
costumes  of  the  figures  and  as  reproducing  forgotten 
customs;  but  they  have  been  repainted  Avith  a  heavi- 
ness which  lessens  their  value.  After  seeing  the 
heraldic  lions  at  the  foot  of  the  two  pilasters  of  the 
doorways,  gazing  up  at  the  walls  with  their  deep 
open  cornice,  of  a  building  which,  though  so  little 
striking  without,  is  a  magnificent  temple  within  ;  after 
looking  at  the  buildings  of  the  Franciscans  with  their 
low  cloister  and  sombre  campanile,  at  S.  Laurentius  on 
his  pillar,  at  the  cypresses  of  the  cemetery — even 
then  the  interest  of  the  place  is  not  exhausted. 

On  the  polite  pretence  of  seeking  our  opinion  upon 
some  inscription,  Signor  de'  Rossi  introduced  us  into 
a  cloister  that  is  very  rarely  visited.  Its  galleries 
have  arches  fully  vaulted,  narrow  and  low ;  their 
pillars,  Avhich  are  unlike  one  another,  and  are  some- 
times pieces  joined  together,  adapt  the  gorge  or 
cavetto  which  surmounts  them  to  bevelled  entabla- 
tures ;  three-lobed  niches  ornament  the  upper  story, 
resting   on   a  frieze   of  pronounced   romantic  taste. 


372  KOME. 

Earlier  than  the  wonderful  cloisters  of  S.  Paul  and 
S.  John  Lateran,  this,  which  shows  the  same  princi- 
ples of  art  in  its  beginnings,  belongs  to  the  eleventh 
century. 

Returning  to  the  city  by  a  long  straight  street, 
when  you  have  crossed  the  piazza  and  passed  the 
church  of  S.  Maria  Maggiore,  you  will  observe  at  the 
corner  of  the  Via  Urbana  a  small  church  placed  on  a 
lower  level  of  the  earth. 

S.  Pudentiana  is  announced  by  a  square  brick  bell- 
tower,  composed  of  a  triple  row  of  three-lobed  arches, 
supported  by  two  columns.  Each  of  these  stories, 
adorned  with  small  medallions  of  black  marble,  is 
finished  by  a  cornice  of  round  tiles ;  a  low  roof  sur- 
mounted by  an  iron  cross  crowns  the  Avhole,  while 
tiny  bits  of  vegetation  mingle  green  veins  with  the 
Avarm  tones  of  the  brick.  Such  bell-towers  are 
numerous  at  Rome  ;  their  antique  style  ennobling  in 
them  a  certain  indefinable  look  of  poverty  and  dilap- 
idation. 

This  church  is  associated  with  the  first  patricians 
of  Rome  Avho  professed  Christianity  ;  you  can  still 
distinguish  under  the  crypt,  the  foundations  of  a  palace 
of  AA'hich  Pius  I.  made  an  oratory  in  the  year  154  : 
this  palace  belonged  to  a  senatorial  family,  Avho  are 
supposed,  under  that  pontiff",  to  haA^e  giA'en  hospitality 
to  S.  Justin,  as  its  ancestors  had  to  S.  Peter.  Thus 
the  Catholic  fasti  must  lia\'e  begun  there,  Avith  the 
earliest  preachings. 


S.  PUDENTIANA.  373 

Let  us  not  be  afraid  of  citing  as  authorities  the 
Acts  of  the  Apostles,  the  Epistles  of  S.  Paul,  the 
Acts  of  S.  Justin,  the  chronicles  of  Eusebius,  the 
works  of  Anastasius  and  of  S.  Jerome,  the  Annals 
even  of  Baronius,  and  the  BoUandists.  These  writers 
trace  for  more  than  a  century  the  history  of  the 
family  of  the  senator  Punicus  Pudens,  who,  with  his 
mother  Priscilla,  had  welcomed  and  protected  S. 
Peter ;  the  Acta  have  transmitted  the  memory  of  the 
children  of  this  patrician,  Pudentius  and  Sabinella ; 
while  the  third  generation  was  represented  by  two 
brothers,  Timothy  and  Novatus,  and  two  girls,  Pras- 
seda  or  Praxedes  and  Pudentiana.  Inscriptions  con- 
firm the  testimony  of  the  sacred  historians :  the  ceme- 
tery, underground,  where,  close  to  the  Viminal,  be- 
yond the  Salarian  gate,  Punicus  Pudens  and  his  wife 
were  buried,  has  retained  the  name  of  Priscilla ;  S. 
Peter  was  represented  there  in  the  third  century 
between  the  two  daughters  of  Sabinella.  In  the 
eighth,  Pascal  I.  discovered  and  brought  to  Rome  the 
bodies  of  S.  Praxedes  and  S.  Pudentiana,  the  two 
hostesses  of  S.  Justin  :  Ave  still  read  in  the  catacombs 
of  PrisciUa  the  inscription  of  a  Cornelia  Pudentianeta, 
which  attests  the  immense  duration  of  this  fsimily 
burying-place. 

This  house,  where  S.  Peter  is  supposed  to  have 
lived,  and  to  have  sat  in  the  curule  chair  of  the  sen- 
ator, which  has  probably  been  preserved, — this  house 
was  so  noted  that  after  an  interval  of  somethin";  less 


374  EOME. 

than  a  hundred  years  a  pope  consecrated  it,  and  under 
Constantine  the  modest  chapel  was  replaced  by  a 
church  dedicated  to  Sancta  Pudentiana.  This  em- 
peror divided  the  aisles  by  twelve  ancient  columns  of 
grey  marble,  which  in  1598  it  was  necessary  to  sur- 
round by  pilasters  5  he  placed  in  a  chapel  to  the  right 
an  altar,  on  which  S.  Peter  was  said  to  have  sacri- 
ficed ;  he  left  open  under  the  pavement  the  Puteolus 
of  a  domestic  catacomb  where  Pudentiana  had  gath- 
ered together  the  bodies  of  a  legion  of  martyrs, 
whose  remains  are  still  to  be  seen.  In  the  cemetery 
of  Priscilla  they  have  recovered  several  portraits  of 
this  family,  a  fact  that  adds  to  the  interest  of  the 
important  work  of  which  I  now  have  to  speak. 

The  Constantinian  mosaic,  of  great  size,  executed 
in  the  tribune  of  the  choir  at  the  back  of  the  high 
altar,  and  composed  in  honor  of  the  family  of  Punicus 
Pudens,  is  something  more  than  a  work  of  art  or  a 
curiosity  ;  it  is  a  masterpiece  of  Christian  antiquity. 
Giulio  Romano  must  have  loved  this  rare  piece,  which 
Poussin  could  never  weary  of  contemplating  and  ex- 
tolling. The  composition  is  simple  and  symmetrically 
arranged.  In  the  centre  is  seated  Christ,  draped  in 
a  toga  of  gold ;  to  his  right  and  left  are  placed  S. 
Peter  and  S.  Paul  crowned,  the  one  by  S.  Pudentiana, 
the  other  by  her  sister  Praxedes  ;  around  these  prin- 
cipal figures  are  grouped  Pudens  and  his  descendants, 
Pudentius,  Novatus,  Timothy,  and  Sabinella.  The 
draperies  of  the   Saviour   are  well   distributed  j  the 


THE  MOSAICS  OF  S.  PUDENTIANA.  375 

calm  tone  of  the  picture^  the  character  and  arrange- 
ment of  the  figures,  are  all  alike  remarkable.  It  is 
the  most  ancient  Christian  pictm'e  that  can  be  studied 
at  Rome  as  a  work  of  art ;  those  of  the  catacombs 
are  rather  curious  documents,  the  mosaics  of  S.  Cos- 
tanza  and  of  S.  Agnese  hardly  represent  more  than 
ornament  and  decoration,  those  of  S.  Maria  Maggiore 
are  poorly  lighted,  and  so  small  that  from  below  you 
cannot  examine  them ;  finally,  those  of  Ravenna  are 
later.  Some  Italian  critics  have  attributed  this 
mosaic  to  the  reign  of  Pope  Adrian  I.;  but  one  must 
have  had  little  experience,  to  attribute  a  work  of 
this  kind  to  the  very  depth  of  the  decline,  towards 
the  end  of  the  ninth  century.  If  Ave  study  the  revo- 
lutions in  art  between  the  second  and  the  twelfth  cen- 
turies, we  shall  understand  that  the  purer  a  work  ap- 
pears in  form  and  style,  the  nearer  it  comes  to 
antiquity  ;  just  as  the  more  dramatic  sentiment  or 
tender  and  mystic  expression  you  discover  in  it,  the 
closer  will  it  be  to  the  thirteenth  century. 

If  you  foUow  the  Via  Urbana  which  Urban  VIII. 
laid  oixt,  but  which  under  the  kings,  as  Livy  tells  us, 
was  already  called  clivus  Urbius,  you  will  reach  the 
quarter  of  the  Suburra  which  figures  so  often  in  the 
Roman  annals.  The  Via  di  S.  Pietro  in  Vincoli  lead- 
ing to  the  church  of  that  name  is  thought  to  be  iden- 
tical with  one  that  legend  has  made  very  famous. 
"  Tidlia  regained  her  house,"  says  Livy,  "  and  when 
come  to  the  top  of  the  Cyprian  Way,  where  the  altar 


376  KOME. 

of  Diana  had  been,  she  turned  to  the  right  to  go  down 
the  Urbian  slope,  so  to  go  up  again  on  to  the  slope  of 
the  Esquilise,  when  suddenly  the  driver  of  her  car 
stopped  in  terror,  and,  holding  the  reins,  shoAved  to 
his  mistress  Servius  lying  slain.  There,  as  tradition 
says,  was  wrought  a  hideous  deed,  and  this  spot  is 
the  commemoration  of  it,  for  ever  since  the  name  of 
Yicus  Sceleratus  has  been  given  to  that,  in  which 
TuUia,  delirious  and  tormented  by  the  furies,  urged 
her  car  over  the  corpse  of  her  father,  and  being 
splashed  with  the  blood  from  the  wheels,  carried  with 
her  to  her  own  home  her  share  of  the  gore  and 
slaughter :  this  is  why  the  gods,  angry  at  that  bad  be- 
ginning of  the  reign,  made  ready  an  evil  end  for  it." 

As  curiosity  has  brought  us  down  into  the  Suburra, 
let  us  turn  this  digression  to  advantage  by  going  to 
see  some  other  mosaics,  nearly  as  important  as  those 
of  S.  Pudentiana  which  we  will  find  in  the  church  of 
SS.  Cosma  and  Damiano  at  the  entrance  to  the 
Forum. 

Like  S.  Lorenzo  in  Miranda,  its  neighbor,  the 
church  of  S.  Cosnius  is  enclosed  within  the  colonnades 
and  sanctuary  of  an  ancient  temple.  You  will  read 
everywhere  that  this  temple  was  consecrated  to 
Romidus,  son  of  Maxentius;  the  truth  is,  that  nobody 
knows  to  Avhom  it  was  dedicated,  and  that  probably 
from  526  to  530,  when  Felix  IV.  erected  this  little 
church,  and  gave  it  the  pagan  cdJa  for  a  vestibule, 
contemporaries   knew   no   more   than  we    do.      This 


SS.  COSMA  E  DAMTANO.  377 

rotunda  possesses  an  antique  door  of  bronze,  corre- 
sponding in  character  to  the  ancient  marbles  of  the 
temple,  a  circumstance  that  in  my  opinion  throws  a 
good  deal  of  doubt  upon  the  tradition  which  brings 
from  Perugia,  at  some  indeterminate  date,  a  door 
■whose  curious  ornamentation,  like  the  temple  itself, 
probably  belongs  to  the  end  of  the  third  century.  It 
was  Felix  IV.  who  had  the  mosaics  of  SS.  Cosma 
and  Damiano  executed  ;  in  style  and  nature  of  design 
they  stiU  preserve  some  connection  with  the  expiring 
schools  of  antiquity.  To  help  me  to  appreciate  them, 
a  young  monk  informed  me  that  the  noun  Diosaic 
comes  from  Musivum,  and  means  worthy  of  the  Muses. 
What  a  glorious  etymology  !  It  would  be  worth  dis- 
cussing, if  it  could  be  proved  that  the  mosaics  of  the 
Temple  of  Fortune,  erected  at  PrKueste  by  SuUa — 
the  first,  says  Pliny,  that  were  seen  at  Rome — rep- 
resented Muses.  He  adds  that  the  Greeks  got  the 
process  of  mosaic  work  from  the  Persians,  and 
that  in  his  time  they  began  to  make  them  in  colored 
glass. 

Elevated  in  the  centre  of  the  apsis,  between  S. 
Damiano  and  S.  Cosma,  who  are  presented  by  S. 
Peter  and  8.  Paul,  the  figure  of  the  Saviour,  blessing 
with  his  right  hand,  and  with  his  left  holding  the  Gos- 
pels, and  clothed  in  an  ample  white  mantle,  and  pur- 
ple dalmatic, — this  figure  with  its  nimbus  possesses 
an  incontestable  majesty.  S.  Cosma  bears  one  of 
those  crowns  of  flowers  which  covered  the  bread  of 


378  EOME. 

oblation,  offered  by  the  faithful — a  usage  perpetuated 
down  to  our  own  time.  Disposed  with  great  dignity, 
the  draperies  are  well  suited  to  the  attitudes  and 
figures ;  it  is  still  somewhat  antique  art,  but  under 
the  guidance  of  a  new  law.  To  the  left  is  represented 
the  fourth  of  the  popes  canonized  under  the  name  of 
Felix,  a  valuable  portrait,  though  the  head  unfortu- 
nately, over-restored  by  a  mosaic-worker  of  the  six- 
teenth century,  seems  very  weak  beside  the  others. 
On  the  right  S.  Damianus  is  followed  by  S.  Theodore. 
Below  this  large  subject,  at  once  monumental  and 
simple,  the  Twelve  Sheep  standing  on  either  side  of 
the  crowned  Lamb  are  flanked  by  the  two  holy  cities, 
Bethlehem  and  Jerusalem,  the  birthplace  and  the 
tomb.  On  the  frieze  flit  cherubs,  beside  the  Book 
with  the  Seven  Seals  and  the  Golden  Candlestick. 
Let  us  not  omit  the  Phoenix — winged  prototype  of 
the  resurrection,  having  a  star  for  nimbus.  These 
mosaics  can  only  be  compared  to  those  of  S.  Puden- 
tiana,  and  to  those  others  which  we  shall  soon  see  at 
S.  Maria  Maggiore.  It  is  interesting  to  recall  that 
nine  centuries  afterwards,  Avhen  Raphael  was  prepar- 
ing the  designs  for  the  tapestries  of  Leo  X.  (seven  of 
the  original  cartoons  of  wdiich  are  at  South  Kensing- 
ton), he  did  not  disdain  to  copy,  or  almost  copy,  for 
the  figure  of  the  Saviour,  the  Christ  of  SS.  Cosma  e 
Damiano. 

Let  us  return  to  the  Esquiline  and  salute,  before 
entering   the    basilica  of   Our  Lady   of  Snov/s,   the 


S.  PEASSEDE.  379 

granddaughter  of  the  senator  Pudens — the  younger 
sister  of  S.  Pudentiana. 

Above  the  old  theatre  of  Florus,  and  the  piazza 
where  the  house  of  Propertius  stood,  which  Ovid  and 
TibuUus  used  to  visit,  a  few  steps  from  the  house  of 
the  Pudentii,  and  probably  in  their  grounds,  were  the 
Thermae  of  Novatus,  brother  of  Prassedes.  Pius  I. 
founded  an  oratory  there,  which  Pascal  I.,  in  the 
eighth  century,  enlarged  into  a  church,  ceded  by  In- 
nocent III.  to  the  monks  of  Vallombrosa.  It  is  still 
very  interesting,  though  it  was  embellished  by  S. 
Charles  Borromeo,  titular  cardinal  of  S.  Prassede. 

So  ftxr  as  restoration  goes,  saints  are  undoubtedly 
not  quite  so  reckless  as  other  princes ;  for  S.  Prassede 
has  preserved  a  venerable  and  attractive  air.  Aisles 
divided  by  sixteen  columns  of  granite,  an  altar-canopy 
supported  on  pillars  of  porphyry  ;  a  choir  with  two 
flights  of  steps  of  enormous  blocks  of  rosso  autlco, 
the  most  valuable  of  marbles,  since  it  is  no  longer  to 
be  found — such  are  the  materials  Avhich  throw  back 
into  antiquity  a  Carolingian  temple  decked  out  with 
fragments  of  the  pagan  era.  On  the  great  arch  and 
the  Tribune  are  mosaics  of  the  ninth  century,  curious 
from  variovis  points  of  view.  While  at  S.  Pudentiana 
the  two  sisters  are  crowning  the  apostles,  here  they 
are  presented  to  Christ  by  the  guests  of  the  family, 
S.  Peter  and  S.  Paul.  In  memory  of  their  high  birth, 
the  artist  has  clad  them  like  great  ladies  of  the  time 
of  Stephen  V.,  in  their  very  finest  apparel.     At  the 


380  EOME. 

angles  of  the  semicircle  appear  Pius  I.  and  Pascal  I. 
— the  last  being  a  likeness.  Above  the  great  arch 
the  Four  and  Twenty  Elders  of  the  Apocalypse, 
draped  in  white,  cast  down  their  crowns. 

The  rude  taste  and  execution  of  these  mosaics 
prove  that  centuries  elapsed  between  their  composi- 
tion and  the  almost  classic  work  of  S.  Pudentiana. 
The  Twelve  Sheep  and  the  Lamb  were  substituted 
more  and  more  under  the  successors  of  Theodosius 
for  the  real  representations  of  Christ  and  the  apostles, 
and  threatened  to  annihilate  Christian  art  at  the  out- 
set. A  council  in  707  had  to  be  appealed  to,  to 
pass  a  decree  on  this  question,  and  a  prohibition 
was  issued  against  transfn'ming  Jesus  and  his  dis- 
ciples into  sheep  ;  a  prohibiti(in  Avhich  cannot,  how- 
ever, have  been  very  absolute,  for  more  than  one 
himdred  years  later,  from  817  to  824,  the  mosaics  of 
8.  Prassede  reproduce  these  emblems.  They  only 
fell  into  desuetude  along  with  other  subjects  taken 
from  the  Apocalypse ;  that  is,  after  the  year  1000, 
when  the  vision  of  S.  John,  who  Avas  thought  to  have 
assigned  this  date  for  the  end  of  the  Avorld,  w^as  for 
the  moment  discredited  by  the  undisturbed  continua- 
tion of  the  century.  Other  mosaics,  inferior  to  those 
of  S.  Pudentiana,  that  is,  more  recent,  decorate  the 
closed  chapel  where  is  preserved  the  shaft  of  a  column 
of  oriental  breccia  brought  from  Jerusalem  in  1223 
with  credulous  piety  by  John  Colonna,  in  the  persua- 
sion that  Christ  had  been  bound  to  it  at  the  Flagellation. 


THE  CHAPEL  OF  THE  COLUMN.  381 

Enriched  with  mosaics,  for  the  most  part  on  a 
golden  ground,  curious  in  arrangement,  adorned  with 
exquisite  splendor,  this  chapel  is  a  perfect  jewel- 
casket  ;  the  thirteenth  century,  completing  it,  en- 
dowed it  with  a  certain  fineness  and  delicacy  Avhich 
enhances  the  oriental  character  of  the  AA'hole.  On 
three  sides  the  base  of  the  wall  is  faced  with  marbles 
of  an  amber  shade  ;  at  the  corners  are  raised  on  an- 
tique stylobates  four  granite  pillars  with  gilded  Corin- 
thian capitals,  supporting  a  vault  covered  with  mosaics. 
There  are  several  figures  of  the  blessed,  singularly  ap- 
parelled ;  above  the  door  are  represented  Sabinella, 
and  SS,  Prassedes,  Pudentiana,  and  Bridget ;  on  the 
altar,  between  two  columns  of  oriental  alabaster,  they 
have  executed  in  mosaic  a  very  incongruous  Madonna. 
Nothing  could  be  more  vmexpected  than  the  sparkling 
richness  of  this  little  sanctuary,  seen  in  the  dim  light, 
where  Ave  find  the  love  of  the  beautiful  expressed 
with  originality  in  a  barbarous  age,  and  executed 
with  the  most  precious  materials.  If  we  do  not  speak 
of  the  Flagellation  which  hangs  in  the  vestry,  it  is 
because  Giulio  Romano  has  treated  it  with  an  elabo- 
rate reaching  after  archaism,  that  has  residted  in  a  most 
frosty  look. 

With  its  flattened  domes,  its  seventeenth  and  eigh- 
teenth century  facades,  its  double  porticos — vaguely 
degenerate  imitations  of  S.  Peter's, — the  patriarchal 
basilica  of  Santa  ]\Iaria  ]\Iaggiore  would  have  only  the 
appearance  of  a  modern  building,  if  our  countryman, 


382  ROME. 

Gregory  XI.,  had  not  presented  it  with  a  great  bell- 
tower  of  four  stories,  with  a  conical  roof,  which  is  the 
highest  in  Rome  :  though  that  is  not  saying  much. 
You  can  see  this  tower  from  the  two  ends  of  the  very 
long  street  which  the  church  interrupts  and  divides, 
— a  street  which  borders  on  the  Esquiline,  Viminal, 
Quirinal,  and  Pincian,  jiassing  through  populous  re- 
gions and  through  deserts. 

Santa  Maria  Maggiore  is  a  great  name  :  Peter  the 
Venerable  says  that  the  basilica  of  Lateran  apart, 
that  of  Liberius  is  the  first  {major  dignitate)  of  the 
churches  of  Rome  and  of  the  world. 

Legend  being  the  poetry  of  churches,  the  nearer 
you  approach  the  legendary  ages,  the  less  meaningless 
and  commonplace  does  the  ornamentation  become  :  in 
this  respect,  S.  Maria  Maggiore  is  greatly  indebted  to 
Nicholas  IV.,  that  very  enlightened  and  slightly  ro- 
mantic pontiff,  who  favored  the  Ghibellines,  who 
dreamt  of  new  crusades,  and  who  founded  our  univer- 
sity of  Montpellier.  He  enlarged  and  consolidated 
the  apse  of  the  basilica ;  and  covered  the  tribune 
with  mosaics  by  Jacopo  da  Torrita  (1288-1292). 
To  about  the  same  period  belong  the  mosaics  of 
Philip  Rossuti,  pupil  of  Torrita  (he  signed  Mussuti), 
which  ornament  the  fa9ade  fronting  the  piazza,  and 
set  forth  for  the  instruction  of  the  populace  the  legend 
of  the  Festival  of  Snows  and  the  Liberian  foundation; 
these  Benedict  XIV.  concealed  under  the  portico  of 
a  vulgar  fayade,  designed  by  Ferdinando  Fuga. 


S.  MARIA  MAGGIORE.  383 

Torrita's  mosaics  on  the  vault  of  the  tribune  have 
that  suavity  peculiar  to  a  disciple  of  the  Sienesc 
school  at  the  dawn  of  the  most  prosperous  period  of 
the  republic.  In  a  great  medallion  whose  blue  ground 
is  covered  with  stars  Christ  is  seated  Avith  the  Virgin, 
the  former  a  figure  of  triumphant  beauty.  On  either 
side  are  saints  on  a  gold  ground,  separated  from  the 
Virgin  by  two  groups  of  angels,  above  which  is  a  de- 
sign of  intertwined  branches,  enamelled  Avith  flowers 
and  animated  by  bii'ds :  nothing  coidd  be  richer  nor 
more  charming  than  the  fair  harmony  of  this  deco- 
ration. 

Between  the  Avindows,  Gaddo  Gaddi  has  executed 
other  mosaics  of  most  happy  effect,  though  perhaps  a 
little  too  near  a  formidable  rival,  among  which  we 
would  call  especial  attention  to  the  Death  of  the  Vir- 
gin. In  (jaddi  Ave  seem  to  trace  more  Byzantine 
stiffness.  Cardinal  Colonna,  and  it  does  honor  to 
this  noble  house,  helped  Nicholas  IV.  AA'ith  his  priA^ate 
fortune  to  endoAV  Our  Lady  Avith  these  masterpieces. 
So  Torrita  has  placed  at  one  corner  the  likeness  of 
the  prelate  kneeling ;  himself  he  has  represented  in 
modest  proportions,  on  his  knees,  in  his  monk's  dress. 


384  ROME. 


CHAPTER    XX. 

On  Shrove  Tuesday  the  Carnival  gaieties  used  to 
reach  the  very  height  of  their  frenzy.  It  was  quite 
worth  while  to  make  your  Avay,  an  hour  before  the 
Ave  Maria,  from  the  Piazza  del  Popolo  to  the  Pioni- 
bino  Palace,  at  the  risk  of  being  torn  to  pieces  by 
Msenads.  I  do  not  know  how  the  women  with  bou- 
quets for  sale  ever  succeeded  in  moving  along  be- 
tween the  close  lines  of  carriages,  or  the  dealers  in 
confetti  bringing  fresh  supplies,  in  reaching  the  sides 
of  the  cars. 

The  preparations  for  the  closing  ceremony  of  each 
day  were  as  curious  as  the  performance  itself.  To- 
wards half-past  five,  the  soldiers  having  made  the 
carriages  pass  round  by  the  adjacent  streets,  there 
only  remained  foot-passengers  on  the  Corso — a  mov- 
ing mosaic  of  hats  and  bonnets.  Then  the  carabi- 
niers,  in  files  two  bi*oad,  invading  the  middle  of  the 
street,  divided  the  compact  crowd  in  two ;  heaving  it 
aside,  so  to  speak,  on  to  the  sidewalks,  as  snow  is 
swept  back  on  mountain  roads.  The  centre  was 
thus  left  nearly  empty,  but  unequally  so  |  the  edge 
straggling  over  its  border  |  so,  hardly  was  this  first 
operation    completed,  before   a   squadron  of  cavalry 


THE  CARNIVAL.  385 

rushed  forward  at  full  gallop  to  finish  the  clearing  of 
the  street.  After  this  double  expedition  the  road  was 
made,  and  the  field  swept  clean.  Almost  immediately, 
from  the  Piazza  del  Popolo,  where  they  were  held 
hack  by  cables  that  they  not  unfrequently  broke 
through,  were  let  loose  on  the  Corso  six  Barbary 
steeds,  wild,  without  any  gear,  without  riders,  or 
bits,  or  bridles,  free  as  in  the  desert.  With  plaited 
mane,  with  glowing  eye,  and  foaming  mouth,  they 
flew  down  this  long  narrow  avenue,  in  which  even 
the  houses  seemed  full  of  life  and  passion  ;  finishing 
the  straight  course  in  the  twinkling  of  an  eye,  terrified 
at  the  loud  cries  and  shouts  of  the  crowd  along  the 
road,  as  well  as  at  the  great  quantity  of  people  up  at 
the  windows.  The  swiftest  were  applauded  and 
goaded  on  by  an  uproar  that  made  them  rear,  while 
the  last  Avere  escorted  by  hissings  and  hootings.  The 
cavalcade  cleared  the  space  like  some  dark  flash  ;  be- 
hind it  the  throng  resumed  possession  of  the  street, 
which  once  more  became  choked  up.  At  the  outlet 
of  the  Piazza  di  Venezia  the  harberi  came  rushing  to 
the  foot  of  the  balcony  where  a  senator  handed  to  the 
winner  the  prize,  as  well  as  a  great  standard  of  pre- 
cious stuff  from  ten  to  twelve  metres  long.  This  was 
of  woven  silk  and  gold  thread  of  extreme  magnifi- 
cence, because  the  Israelites  of  Rome,  bound  ever 
since  the  Middle  Ages  to  furnish  this  standard  as  a 
mark  of  feudal  service,  made  it  a  point  of  honor  to  be 
generous. 

25 


386  ROME. 

As  soon  as  the  horses  had  vanished,  madness  re- 
sumed its  sway  until  the  hour  when  authority,  with  a 
monosyllable  uttered  by  the  cannon  of  S.  Angelo, 
suddenly  restored  the  delirious  city  to  its  right  mind. 
The  confetti  ceased  to  rain  down ;  the  cries  all 
stopped;  and  no  one  was  to  be  seen  on  the  Corso  but 
citizens  tranquilly  making  their  Avay  home. 

It  is  the  last  evening  of  the  carnival,  the  harberi  are 
gone  and  the  night  has  closed  in,  the  carriages  now 
return  to  the  Corso  where  the  masquerading  pedes- 
trians throng  thicker  than  ever.  Small  candles  have 
been  distributed,  and  around  cars  illuminated  with 
torches,  tapers,  fireworks,  every  one  holds  up  in  the 
air  his  lighted  moccolino.  In  the  stands,  balconies, 
windows,  up  to  the  very  roofs,  the  moccoU  are  spark- 
ling everywhere.  To  the  prolonged  shouts  of  the 
crowd  have  succeeded  short,  stifled  laughter,  little 
panting  breathless  cries — slight,  chirping  noises  of  a 
most  singular  effect :  a  struggle  has  begun,  which 
produces  an  indescribable  animation,  everybody  is 
trying  to  blow  out  his  neighbor's  candle,  and  to  keep 
his  own  alight ;  and  this,  not  only  in  the  street  where 
nothing  is  seen  but  people  jumping  and  blowing,  but 
also  in  all  the  houses  as  well. 

If  a  man  is  too  tall,  or  if  he  has  stuck  his  moccoletto 
on  the  end  of  a  long  pole,  they  mount  on  his  shoul- 
ders, or  hang  on  his  arms,  or  pursue  him  with  other 
poles,  furnished  with  extinguishers.  On  the  cars, 
whose  sides  are  scaled,  the  lights  flicker  and  vacillate, 


THE  ARTISTS'  FESTIVAL.  387 

twenty  times  extinguished  and  twenty  times  re- 
kindled. From  the  street  through  the  open  windows 
of  pahices,  Hghts  are  seen  moving  rapidly  about,  and 
madmen  jumping  up  and  down,  continuing  indoors 
the  exhilarating  drama  of  the  Corso ;  universal  move- 
ment, contagious  and  fascinating !  I  have  seen  princes, 
ambassadors,  even  prelates,  battling  in  real  delirium, 
and  the  noble  beauties  of  Rome,  carried  away  by  ex- 
citement, sacrifice,  in  order  to  extinguish  tapers  and 
resinous  torches,  their  embroidered  handkerchiefs, 
India  shawls,  and  muffs  of  the  finest  furs.* 

Rome  has  another  festival  like  the  carnival,  but  of 
German  importation,  and  celebrated  on  the  1st  of 
May,  a  day  of  joy  across  the  Rhine,  where  they  stiU 
solemnize  the  opening  of  the  new  season.  It  was 
created  by  the  artists  of  the  German  club,  organized 
at  the  beginning  of  this  century,  when  the  Tedeschi 
borrowed  from  us  the  custom  of  going  forth  to  receive 
at  the  Ponte  Molle  new  recruits  on  their  arrival  at 
Rome. 

The  character  of  the  fetes  recalls  the  Middle  Ages  : 
like  every  burlesque  exhibition  of  pagan  rites,  it  has 
its  dignitaries,  its  militia,  its  corporations  of  musicians, 
of  high  priests,  of  cooks,  of  scullions,  of  poets,  of  mas- 
ters of  ceremonies,  and  of  Vetturini,  who  must  all  ac- 

*  Although  the  carnival  has  been  celebrated  every  year  with- 
out any  intermission,  it  has  lost  most  of  its  old  spirit  and  mag- 
nificence. Quite  lately,  however,  there  has  been  an  effort  to  re- 
vive its  ancient  character. 


888  EOME. 

cept  the  office  to  which  they  are  appointed,  and  dress 
themselves  np  in  grotesque  costumes.  At  daybreak 
the  whole  band  goes  out  by  the  Porta  Maggiore,  and 
proceeds  as  far  as  the  Torre  dei  Schiavi,  a  general 
meeting-place,  whence  the  procession  makes  its  way 
for  the  grottoes  of  Cervara,  seven  miles  from  Rome, 
near  Teverone.  At  the  moment  of  departure,  on  a 
car  festooned  with  garlands  and  drawn  by  four  great 
oxen  whose  ample  horns  have  been  gilded,  appears 
the  President  in  the  midst  of  his  court  of  chamber- 
lains, of  madmen,  and  poets  :  he  passes  his  country- 
men in  review,  makes  them  a  solemn  and  grotesque 
discourse,  and  distributes  to  the  worthiest  the  knightly 
order  of  the  Baiocco ;  then  the  procession  proceeds 
on  its  Avay,  escorted  by  its  fourgon  of  wines,  its  cook- 
ing battery,  and  its  cup-bearers,  towards  the  grottoes, 
chosen  for  a  monster  festival  on  account  of  their  fresh- 
ness and  their  darkness,  which  is  favorable  to  effects 
of  illumination.  As  at  the  Feast  of  Unreason,  asses 
furnish  a  heroic  mount  to  the  heroes  of  the  masquer- 
ade ;  they  are  harnessed  with  toys  from  Nuremberg, 
and  their  riders  clad  in  garments  which  make  them 
look  like  Robin  Hood's  men. 

Soon  commence,  under  the  title  of  Olympic  games, 
parades  which  used  to  attract  to  Cervara  the  elegant 
population  of  Rome,  and  even  the  official  representa- 
tives of  different  nationalities  :  donkey  races,  foot 
races,  sack  races,  and  other  diversions,  in  which  the 
victors  have  decreed  to  them  burlesque  diadems  and 


THE  VILLA  ALBANL  389 

Campanian  vases,  decorated  for  the  occasion.  At  the 
bottom  of  the  grotto  a  high  priest  calls  up  the  Sibyl 
who,  appearing  in  the  midst  of  Bengal  fires,  recites  in 
comic  verses  the  exploits  of  the  school,  and  pi'ophe- 
sies  the  destinies  of  its  artists  for  the  following  year. 

A  Homeric  supper  prepared  and  served  on  stone 
tables  in  the  heart  of  the  cavern,  which  is  lighted  bj 
torches  and  festooned  by  garlands,  precedes  the  re- 
turn, which  is  animated  by  torches  and  noisy  trumpet- 
blasts.  I  do  not  think  a  foreign  colony  ever  organ- 
ized abroad  a  national  festival  with  a  spirit  of 
originality  to  compare  with  this ;  its  farcical  charac- 
ter represents  the  old  German  gaiety,  while  the  pict- 
uresque display  of  the  spectacle  could  only  have  been 
imagined  by  artists.  The  era  of  the  Festival  of  the 
Germans  is  reckoned  by  Olympiads ;  interrupted  by 
the  Revolution  of  1848,  it  was  resumed  in  1853,  in 
which  the  procession  took  Castel  Giubileo  for  its 
theatre ;  in  1855  they  met  in  the  dell,  misnamed 
from  the  Nymph  Egeria ;  and  later  (Werner  Olym- 
piad) returned  to  Cervara. 

All  this  tumult  arouses  a  desire  for  silence  and  re- 
pose. The  carnival  prepares  you  by  striking  contrast 
for  the  spectacle  of  the  YiUa  Albani  Castelbarco.  The 
porticoes  and  their  statues,  the  grassy  terraces,  the 
masses  of  tropical  trees  rising  in  cluiups  from  a  fore- 
ground of  flowered  beds,  stand  out  harmoniously 
against  the  rosy  distance  and  the  azure  of  the  Sabine 
hUls.     The  silvery  shades  in  the  sky  make  a  Avonder- 


390  KOME. 

ful  frame  for  the  lemon-trees,  the  pine,  the  laurel  of 
the  poets,  the  cypress,  and  the  palms  of  the  desert, 
bringing  to  the  city  of  the  apostles  a  reminiscence  of 
Jordan. 

The  villa,  constructed  in  the  Greek  manner  of  the 
last  century,  Avas  designed  for  a  museum  of  antiqui- 
ties, worthy  of  a  family  originally  from  Epirus,  which 
after  the  wars  of  Skanderbeg  exchanged  the  glades 
of  Pindus  for  Italy.  Winckelmann,  a  skilful  inter- 
preter of  the  ideas  of  the  learned  Cardinal  Alexander 
Albani,  studied  here  under  his  patronage ;  the  illus- 
trious archaeologist  carried  out  theories,  which  with 
us  have  only  produced  the  school  of  David  and  the 
antiquities  of  Thermidor. 

Among  the  marbles  of  the  Villa  Albani  you  will 
notice  a  number  of  mutilated  copies  of  statues  of  re- 
nown, and  many  others  of  later  date  ;  not  only  is  the 
study  of  these  profitable  in  itself,  but  you  are  more 
than  compensated  for  coming  by  the  astonishing  pro- 
fusion of  pieces  of  the  rarest  quality,  and  of  objects' 
which  you  do  not  find  anywhere  else.  It  was  in  these 
galleries,  the  richest  of  all  private  collections,  that 
Winckelmann  found  most  of  the  material  for  his  writ- 
ings on  the  art  of  the  ancients. 

In  general,  at  the  Villa  Albani  the  bas-reliefs  are 
superior  to  the  statues  :  if  you  go  there  several  times, 
the  former  is  the  more  important  department  to  which 
you  will  do  well  to  devote  yourself.  A  grove  adjoins 
the    palace — a    sacred  wood,  where    the    trunks    of 


THE  VILLA  LUDOVIST.  391 

mighty  oaks  stand  side  by  side  with  columns  of  gran- 
ite and  marble,  supporting  a  leafy  vaulting,  through 
Avhich  the  grains  of  light  are  filtered  as  through  a 
sieve  upon  the  heads  of  the  gods  disposed  about  in 
the  woods  beneath. 

At  an  opening  to  this  Elysian  grove,  just  recogni- 
tion and  gratitude  have  erected  a  colossal  bust  of 
Winckelmann  •,  nothing  coidd  be  more  singular  than 
the  effect  of  that  twice-Germanic  head  (for  Wolf  was 
the  sculptor)  among  all  those  dwellers  of  the  land  of 
Alcibiades  and  Aspasia.* 

We  were  too  near  the  Villa  Ludovisi  not  to  avail 
ourselves  of  the  permission  to  visit  it,  obtained  with 
considerable  trouble.  The  park  is  limited  on  one 
side  by  the  wall  and  towers  of  Honorius,  and  on  the 
other  by  the  Via  Salaria.f  The  principal  casino  was 
built  by  Domenichino  Zampieri ;  it  offers  no  very 
curious  feature.  The  second  is  a  museum  of  statues; 
the  third  leaves  only  one  moderately  agreeable  recol- 
lection, that  of  a  fresco  representing  Aurora  on  her 
car,  banishing  Night,  and  casting  flowers  before  her. 
Duller  than  the  famous  pictures  of  a  decayed  school 
sometimes  are,  the  Aurora  of  Guercino  is  far  from 
being  comparable  to  the  Aurora  of  Guide  Reni  in  the 
Rospigliosi  Palace. 

*  The  Villa  Alliani  is  now  the  property  of  the  Torlonia  family. 

t  This  park  has  now  heen  laid  out  in  new  streets  and  hnilding 
lots.  The  works  of  art  are  to  be  removed  from  the  casinos  to 
new  buildings  erected  for  them. 


392  KOME. 

Among  the  sculptures  is  the  colossal  head  of  the 
Ludovisi  Juno,  a  masterpiece  inspired  by  Greek  art, 
when  purity  of  form  was  free  from  hardness.  Every- 
thing contributes  to  the  belief  that,  in  contemplating 
this  marvel,  we  are  in  the  presence  of  a  very  old  and 
very  faithful  copy  of  the  celebrated  Juno  of  Argos,  by 
Polycletes  :  it  was  before  this  divinity  that  Goethe  is 
reported  to  have  said  his  prayers  every  morning. 

Among  other  works  worthy  of  attention  are  the 
Mars  at  rest ;  a  bronze  head  of  Cajsar  taken  when 
old,  a  realistic  likeness,  with  a  very  strange  expres- 
sion, which  should  be  compared  with  the  Cfesar  as 
Pontifex  Maximus  of  the  Vatican  ;  a  thrilling  group 
of  Orestes  recognized  by  Electra,  two  likenesses 
probably,  and  of  an  indescribable  sweetness ;  the 
Gaul,  who,  after  poniarding  his  wife,  kills  himself  to 
escape  the  conqueror  (another  masterpiece  of  expres- 
sion and  feeling) ;  finally,  a  charming  little  Faun. 
Such  are  the  most  striking  pieces  among  many  ad- 
mirable works. 


Grounds  of  the  Villa  Borghese 


THE  PALAZZO  BOKGHESE.  393 


CHAPTER    XXI. 

The  galleries  constitute  the  principal  attraction  of 
the  Palazzo  Borghese,  where  artists  are  allowed  to 
copy,  and  the  public  is  admitted,  as  freely  as  in  our 
own  museums;  twelve  salons  (the  whole  ground-floor) 
are  filled  with  panels  and  canvases.  One  of  the  prin- 
cipal merits  of  this  collection  is  that  it  makes  us  bet- 
ter acquainted  than  any  other  with  the  school  of  Fer- 
rara,  not  the  earlier  masters  like  Galassi  or  Cosimo 
Tura,  but  the  disciples  and  grand-disciples  of  Francia 
and  Lorenzo  Costa,  that  pleiad  Avhere  round  Dosso- 
Dossi  and  Garofalo,  gravitate  artists  like  Mazzolino, 
Francis  and  Jerome  Cotignola,  Ercole  Grandi,  Scar- 
cellino,  Ricci,  Girolamo  da  Scar})i,  down  to  Bonona, 
who  was  such  an  imitator  of  the  Caracci.  It  may 
also  be  remarked  that  the  chiefs  of  the  school  figure 
more  extensively  here  than  their  satellites :  Ben- 
venuto  Tisi,  called  Garofalo,  is  represented  by  a  Holy 
Family,  and  by  a  IMarriage  at  Cana,  a  small  but  pre- 
cious reproduction  of  a  great  picture  that  is  lost ;  by 
a  Resurrection  of  Lazarus,  painted  for  the  church  of 
S.  Francis  at  Ferrara ;  by  a  Madonna  between  S. 
Joseph  and  S.  Michael ;  by  that  Descent  from  the 
Cross,  so  justly  famous,  Avhich,  the  work  of  a  pupil 


394  EOME. 

of  genius  who  drew  his  inspiration  from  Eaphael's 
third  manner,  can  be  contrasted  with  the  master's 
OAvn  treatment  of  the  same  subject  in  his  youth. 
Both  pictures  are  in  the  Borghese  gallery.  Let  us 
also  mention  the  Adoration  of  the  Magi,  by  MazzoUne 
of  Ferrara,  the  rival  of  Tisi ;  and  the  Circe  of  Dosso- 
Dossi,  one  of  the  rarest  of  the  Ferrara  masters ;  the 
coloring  is  almost  Venetian. 

The  Csesar  Borgia,  counted  among  the  Raphaels, 
and  about  which  there  has  been  much  talk,  is  a  very 
remarkable  figure,  strangely  posed ;  but  there  is  noth- 
ing to  prove  that  it  represents  the  nephew  of  Alex- 
ander VI.,  while  everything  goes  to  show  that  it  is 
not  by  Raphael ;  the  absence  of  a  certain  suppleness 
and  the  uniformity  of  tone  would  make  one  presume 
rather  that  this  portrait  was  painted  by  a  skilful  artist 
after  an  old  engraving.  The  neighboring  portrait  of 
a  Cardinal  is  really  a  Raphael,  but  you  are  forced 
rather  to  divine  this,  imder  the  retouchings  with 
which  they  have  plastered  it  over.  There  is  no  ob- 
ligation to  accept  as  masterpieces  of  Leonardo  or 
Francia  all  the  works  of  the  old  schools  of  Milan  and 
Ferrara,  in  these  galleries.  The  Borghese  Palace 
does,  however,  possess  one  pearl  of  Francesco  Fran- 
cia, which  may  serve  as  a  touchstone ;  that  is  the 
small,  kneeling,  ecstatic  figure  of  S.  Stephen,  a  clear 
painting  of  a  supreme  fineness,  and  a  feeling  that  is 
almost  beyond  this  world ;  round  this  picture  every- 
thing else  grows  pale  and  heavy  and  seems  effaced. 


THE  PALAZZO  BOKGHESE.  395 

If,  reader,  we  were  to  visit  this  gallery  together, 
we  should  go  straight  to  the  Danae  of  Correggio,  and 
look  at  it  long  in  every  possible  light.  Then  come 
the  Caracci,  Giiido  Keni,  C^arlo  Dolci,  and  the  Paduan 
with  his  Venus  at  her  Toilette,  and  Albano  with  his 
Seasons.  Here  too  we  find  the  only  profane  picture 
of  Federigo  Barocci — ^neas  carrying  away  his 
Father.  The  attitudes  and  heads  are  graceful  5  but 
what  a  singidar  notion  for  an  ascetic,  to  imitate  the 
sensual  and  redundant  manner  of  Correggio.  A  pict- 
ure to  rejoice  Jordaens  or  Goya  is  the  Holy  Family 
of  that  Caravaggio  who  compromised  with  such  adroit 
cynicism  the  name  of  Michael  Angelo.  What  a  hec- 
torer  of  a  painter !  Yet  a  leonine  tread,  after  all, 
throwing  onto  the  canvas  a  splendid  relief  and  a  flesh- 
liness  of  scandalous  opulence. 

The  Nuptials  of  Alexander  and  Roxana  form  two 
groups  in  which  allegory  and  emblems  of  gallantry 
unite  as  in  the  time  of  Gessner.  What  an  absence 
of  primness  and  affectation  in  this  heroic  pastoral,  and 
yet  how  the  artist  has  dissembled  his  vigor  under  a 
grace  in  which  there  is  nothing  enervating ! 

The  Borghese  Palace  possesses,  besides  many  other 
works  of  merit,  two  gems  which  neither  the  amateur 
nor  the  historian  can  afford  to  overlook.  One  is  the 
portrait  of  Maria  de'  Medici,  by  Van  Dyck,  very  deli- 
cate in  physiognomy,  very  expressive,  and  remark- 
able for  the  differences  which  it  offers  in  point  of 
expression  and  character,  to  the  more  common  inter- 


396  ROME. 

pretation  of  Rubens.  The  other  is  one  of  the  finest 
and  the  best  preserved  Holbeins  that  I  have  seen  ;  it 
represents,  in  full  light  and  facing  you,  a  person 
clothed  in  furs  and  with  a  bonnet  on  his  head.  The 
catalogue  tells  us  that  the  original  is  unknoAvn ;  in 
reality  it  is  the  portrait  of  the  Emperor  Maximilian, 
while  still  only  archdidce,  and  before  he  wore  a 
beard.* 

As  we  have  gone  through  the  Borghese  galleries, 
let  us  iinish  the  afternoon  at  their  villa,  so  as  to  ap- 
preciate the  collections  of  the  family  as  a  whole.  The 
important  church  of  S.  Maria  del  Popolo  will  be  passed 
on  the  way.  The  uncle  of  Julius  II.  had  it  rebuilt  in 
the  fifteenth  century  by  the  Florentine  Bacio  Pintelli, 
who  invited  the  great  artists  of  his  own  country  to 
contribute  to  its  embellishment  at  the  very  time  when 
they  were  at  the  height  of  their  genius. 

At  the  threshold  you  are  attracted  by  the  first 
chapel  on  the  right,  which  once  belonged  to  the 
family  of  Sixtus   IV.,  as   is  proved   by  the   Rovere 

*  "  Prince  Paolo  Borghese,  who  lias  been  brought  to  the  verge 
of  ruin  by  speculative  building  projects,  is  involved  in  a  network 
of  difficulties  from  which  there  is  apparently  no  escape.  His 
long-cherished  treasures  are  in  process  of  dispersion,  and  that 
magnificent  collection  of  paintings,  which,  after  the  small  but 
choice  Vatican  gallery  first  attracted  the  attention  of  almost 
every  visitor  to  Home,  has,  with  the  exception  of  a  few  ancestral 
portraits,  been  sold  :  these  now  look  disconsolately  down  from 
the  bare  walls  of  the  palace  >ipon  the  scanty  relics  of  departed 
fjraadeur." — From  a  letter  dated  Berlin,  June  25,  1892. 


S.  MARIA  DEL  POPOLO.  897 

arms,  that  rooted  oak  Avliieli  was  so  good  a  symbol 
for  Pope  Jiilius.  Pinturiccliio  lighted  up  the  kmettes 
of  the  ceiling  and  the  tympana,  with  some  charming 
frescoes,  anecdotes  from  the  life  of  S.  Jerome,  who 
reappears  in  the  altar-piece  of  the  Nativity,  Avhere 
the  Madonna  kneels  with  other  saints,  to  adore  the 
child-god  whom  she  has  brought  forth.  The  subject 
lends  itself  to  subtle  interpretations  of  physiognomy, 
for  it  is  necessary  to  express  at  once  the  protecting 
look  of  the  Mother  and  the  respect  commanded  by 
divinity.  Around  it  is  depicted  one  of  those  land- 
scapes, which  every  one  has  dreamed  of,  and  which 
the  mystic  painters  discovered  in  the  horizons  of  the 
futiire  life.  Below  these  splendors  rises  the  tomb  of 
Cardinal  Christopher  della  Rovere,  by  a  Florentine 
of  the  best  period,  Rossellini  perhaps  ;  the  beauty  of 
this  work  reminds  one  of  the  famous  mausoleum  of 
San  Miniato.  You  Avill  find  Pinturiccliio  again  in  the 
third  chapel,  which  he  decorated  for  8ixtus  IV. ;  here 
he  has  surpassed  himself  in  the  picture  of  the  As- 
sumption, near  a  bronze  statue  of  a  sleepiiig  bishop, 
which  Pollajuolo  would  not  disavow.  In  the  follow- 
ing chapel  Pinturiccliio  has  given  for  guardians  to 
two  fine  Florentine  monuments,  the  Fathers  of  the 
Latin  Church.  Finally,  he  painted  in  the  vault  of 
the  choir  at  the  back  of  the  high  altar,  the  Coronation 
of  the  Virgin,  surrounded  by  lunettes,  containing  the 
four  Evangelists  and  four  Fathers,  as  well  as  stoop- 
ing Sibyls.     Pinturicchio  here  shows  himself  the  im- 


398  EOME. 

mediate  forerunner  of  Raphael ;  the  charm  of  his 
ligures,  and  their  grouping  making  one  think  of  the 
Vatican.  This  church  is  important  then  if  only  for 
the  works  of  a  great  master  nearly  unknown  in 
France  ;  we  shall  find  him  again,  though  less  brilliant 
and  less  pure,  at  the  Sixtine  and  in  the  apartments 
of  Alexander  VI. 

It  is  in  the  choir  of  S.  Maria  del  Popolo  that  rise  to 
right  and  left,  up  to  the  very  vaulting,  the  two  finest 
Florentine  tombs  that  Rome  possesses ;  Julius  II.  had 
them  executed  by  Andrea  Contucci  for  the  Cardinals 
Basso  and  Ascanio  Sforza.  In  the  second,  the  statues 
of  the  Virtues,  and  especially  of  Force,  are  splendid 
productions.  We  must  not  forget  the  windows  of 
Peter  and  Claude  of  Marsillac,  and  not  of  Marseilles, 
as  so  many  critics  have  written  it.  They  were  Do- 
minicans from  Limoges,  whom  Leo  X.  summoned  to 
paint  the  glass  of  the  Vatican,  an  art  in  which  our 
country  was  without  a  rival  in  the  Middle  Ages.  Of 
all  the  works  that  these  masters  executed  at  Rome, 
where  they  acquired  such  a  reputation,  there  only  re- 
main these — a  Life  of  the  Virgin  ;  John  della  Rovere 
had  them  designed  by  Pinturicchio.  Carlo  Maratti, 
the  Caracci,  and  Contucci,  Avho  restored  with  tact  a 
portion  of  the  frescoes  of  the  Perugian  master,  also 
made  their  mark  at  S.  Maria  del  Popolo.  We  will, 
however,  pass  them  by,  to  make  our  way  into  the 
chapel  of  the  Chigi,  who  unluckily  re-handled  and 
modernized  this  church. 


S.  MARIA  DEL  POPOLO.  399 

The  Cliigi  Avere  the  bankers  of  Jidius  II.  As  is 
usual  with  hnanciers  when  they  reach  the  summit  of 
their  fortunes,  these,  in  the  decoration  of  their  chapel 
strove  to  eclipse  the  powers  that  had  made  them ; 
they  had  Raphael  design  them  a  statue,  which  Loren- 
zetto  executed  :  it  is  Jonas,  gracefully  seated  on  his 
whale.  Lorenzetto  made  an  Isaiah  for  a  pendant, 
but  Jonas  depreciates  it  by  comparison.  The  painter 
of  Urbino  designed  the  whole  chapel ;  its  cupola,  its 
mosaics,  the  cartoons  for  the  frieze,  as  "well  as  for  the 
altar-piece  (the  Birth  of  the  Virgin,  intrusted  to 
Sebastian  del  Piombo,  and  poorly  completed  by  Sal- 
viati).  In  the  last  chapel  are  two  Florentine  monu- 
ments, one  of  which  was  erected  between  1501  and 
1507  for  a  Cardinal  PaUavicini,  Avho,  as  he  was  to 
have  so  line  a  shrine  prepared  for  himself,  Avished  to 
enjoy  it  before  being  shut  up  in  it.  Among  the  flags 
of  the  pavement  are  set  some  figures  from  tombs  of 
the  fourteenth  century,  weU-preserA'ed  remains  of  the 
earher  church — a  frequent  and  always  praiseworthy 
usage. 

In  the  sacristy  are  three  other  Florentine  tombs  of 
the  fifteenth  century,  very  admirable  Avorks ;  one  of 
them,  that  of  William  Rocca,  Archbishop  of  Palermo, 
may  be  attributed  to  Benedetto  da  Maiano  :  they  Avere 
remounted  here,  Avhen  the  ancient  cloister  Avas  cut 
aAvay  to  consolidate  the  terraces  of  the  Pincian. 
Finally,  in  the  corridor  leading  to  this  sacristy,  you 
will  find  in  an  ex  voto  oxcv  a  door  three  statues  of 


400  EOME. 

1497,  in  bas-relief  belonging  to  a  school  that  is  rarely 
represented  at  Rome.  It  is  a  sculpture  of  the  Pisans 
— the  Coronation  of  the  Virgin,  a  remarkable  piece 
of  work  in  which  you  already  feel  the  approach  of 
Giotto. 

The  enormous  number  of  statues  assembled  in  the 
Palace  of  the  Villa  Borghese  occasions  a  Uvely  aston- 
ishment, when  we  reflect  upon  the  origin  of  so  rich  a 
gallery.  When,  after  his  marriage  with  Pauline 
Bonaparte,  Prince  Camillo  Borghese,  Invited  by  his 
brother-in-law  to  sell  his  collection,  had  seen  it  de- 
part for  the  Louvre,  where  it  constitutes  our  museum 
of  antiquities,  he  was  seized  in  presence  of  his  de- 
populated galleries  with  a  very  natural  regret :  he 
accordingly  had  all  his  estates  thoroughly  explored, 
with  the  residt  that  they  yielded  him,  like  the  sow- 
ing of  Cadmus,  a  second  crop  of  men  in  marble,  yet 
more  abundant  than  the  first ;  such  is  the  source  of 
the  present  collection.  What  treasures  must  be  hid- 
den in  a  soil  out  of  which,  without  leaving  your  own 
property,  you  extract  a  quarry  of  statues  ! 

In  the  salon  of  Hercules,  the  statue  of  the  hero  in 
female  draperies  is  remarkable  enough,  but  the  great 
sarcophagus  representing  his  labors  is  still  more  so. 
Winckelmann  has  described  its  lid,  on  which  are 
figured  the  Amazons  going  to  the  succor  of  Troy. 
The  small  triangular  altar  is  more  ancient ;  it  goes 
back  to  the  school  of  ^gina.  Nor  must  we  forget 
the   Daphne,  whom  the  laurel  already  wraps  in  its 


THE  VILLA  BOKGHESE.  401 

bark,  and  whose  fingers  are  growing  out  into  branches ; 
it  is  the  only  antique  statue  that  represents  her  dur- 
ing her  transformation.  In  the  gallery  is  a  line  of 
clever  modern  busts  of  the  emperors,  of  red  por- 
phyry, with  draperies  of  alabaster,  placed  on  pedes- 
tals of  African  granite.  Let  us  also  note  a  splendid 
urn  of  porphyry,  and  an  exquisite  bronze  represent- 
ing Nero  as  a  child. 

On  the  upper  story  are  grouped  three  interesting 
works  of  Bernini's  youth,  ^neas  carrying  away  his 
Father  is  rather  cold,  but  the  legs  are  very  fine  and 
the  execution  consummately  skilful ;  the  artist  Avas 
but  fifteen  when  he  could  work  in  this  masterly  man- 
ner. David  with  his  sling  is  a  portrait  of  himself 
at  twenty  ;  his  Daphne,  pursued  by  Apollo,  strug- 
gling in  the  arms  of  the  god,  and  crying  out  while 
undergoing  transformation,  is  a  work  of  just  renown 
— a  vivid  piece,  executed  with  great  force  and  knowl- 
edge in  its  minutest  parts,  and  which  must  have  shed 
the  halo  of  genius  round  a  brow  of  only  eighteen 
springs.  Before  becoming  Urban  VIII.,  Cardinal 
Barberini  improvised  at  the  foot  of  the  group  the 
following  moral : 

Quisquis  amans  sequitur  fugitivfe  gaudia  formse 
Fronde  nianus  implet,  baccas  sen  carpit  amaras. 

Bernini  is  very  well  represented  in  this  palace,  for 
he  also  executed  the  magnificent  bust  of  Cardinal 
Scipio  Borghese,  who  built  the  house.      Among  many 

26 


402  EOME. 

other  marvelsj  in  the  number  of  which  the  Borghese 
Gladiator  figures,  purely  modern  art  is  represented 
by  Canova,  and  well  represented,  thanks  to  the  beauty 
of  his  most  celebrated  model,  the  Princess  Pauline 
having  lent  her  shapely  limbs — made  to  be  repre- 
sented in  marble — to  Venus,  who  thus  becomes  young 
again.  Among  the  remarkable  works  of  Bernini 
must  also  be  reckoned  the  fountain  in  the  Borghese 
gardens. 

Let  us  remark  too  a  mosaic  of  the  second  century, 
representing  a  Sacrifice  of  the  Fetiales  :  three  peas- 
ants conclude  a  bargain  or  ratify  a  pact  on  a  goat- 
skin before  a  statue  of  Mars.  Nothing  could  be  more 
curious  in  point  of  costume  and  type,  and  as  a  docu- 
ment, than  this  ceremony  of  the  ordinary  and  domes- 
tic rites  of  the  last  pagan  ages.  Thanks  to  the 
variety  which  enlivens  this  collection,  you  will  also 
make  acquaintance  there  with  a  Dutch  landscapist, 
very  little  known  in  France — Van  Blomen,  who  died 
in  1740,  after  passing  part  of  his  life  in  Italy,  where 
he  is  known  under  the  name  of  Orizzonte.  This  mas- 
ter has  decorated  a  sahm  of  the  Villa  Borghese  with 
fifty-two  pieces,  and  the  grateful  princes  have  placed 
in  it  a  portrait  of  the  guest  to  whom  they  gave  such 
long  shelter. 

The  gardens  of  this  villa — the  ordinary  termina- 
tion of  a  walk  for  the  quality  of  the  Pincian — have 
lost  their  splendor.  Since  the  nephew  of  Paul  V. 
had  them  laid  out,  this  noble  family  placed  them  at 


THE  VILLA  BORGHESE.  403 

the  disposal  of  the  Roman  populace.  So  when,  in 
1848,  demagogism  replaced  the  pontifical  regime,  the 
grateful  mob,  by  way  of  repaying  the  hospitality 
which  they  had  received  for  ten  generations,  made 
haste  to  fell  the  great  trees,  to  destroy  the  statues,  to 
sack  the  palace,  and  to  burn  the  pavilions  which  had 
for  so  long  given  them  shelter.  Prince  Borghese  has 
replanted,  but  the  trees  are  still  young :  let  us  hope 
that  the  good  people  to  whom  he  has  opened  his 
domain  will  let  them  grow.* 

*"....  Prince  Borghese  might  be  relieved  of  his  most 
pressing  difficulties  if  he  were  only  able  to  accept  the  price  which 
eager  purcliasers  stand  ready  to  give  for  the  extensive  pleasure- 
grounds  just  outside  the  Porta  del  Popolo  so  well  known  as  the 
'Villa  Borghese;'  but  the  sale  of  this  property  has  been  en- 
joined an  the  ground  that  the  people  have  acquired  a  prescrip- 
tive riglit  to  its  use  as  a  park.  On  learning  of  this  measure  the 
indignant  proprietor  at  once  closed  his  gates." — Letter  from  Ber- 
lin, June  25,  1892. 

"...  .  the  destruction  of  the  Villa  Borghese  has  been  stopped 
for  the  moment  by  a  more  or  less  just  decree  of  Court." — Lan- 
ciani,  Ancient  Rome  in  the  Light  of  Recent  Discoveries.  Edition  of 
1895. 


404  EOME. 


CHAPTER    XXII. 

The  road  to  Tivoli  leaves  Rome  by  a  gate  con- 
structed by  Sixtus  V.  in  the  aqueduct  of  the  Mar- 
cian,  Tepulan,  and  Jiilian  waters,  at  the  time  when 
this  pontiff  supported  his  Felice  aqueduct  on  walls 
successively  restored  by  Octavianus,  Titus,  and  Cara- 
calla.  Under  this  arch  could  once  be  seen  in  charm- 
ing perspective  the  trees  of  an  avenue  all  radiant 
with  fresh  verdure,  half-veiling  the  battlements  of  the 
city  and  of  the  Tiburtine  gate. 

At  Tivoli  the  Sabine  Hills  open  out  in  a  horse- 
shoe :  the  old  town,  founded,  they  say,  more  than 
four  centuries  before  Rome  by  refugees  from  Argos, 
occupies  the  southern  extremity  of  the  semicircle, 
and  faces  the  north,  a  circumstance  which  contributes 
to  the  freshness  of  the  air. 

A  number  of  old  houses,  and  hilly  streets,  shops 
with  nothing  for  sale  |  substructures  on  every  side ; 
ancient  postern-gates  where  the  aloe  blossoms  in  the 
crevices  of  the  Avail ;  a  chattering  populace ;  long 
alleys,  low  rooms  whence  in  the  evening  issues  the 
sound  of  rhythmic  singing  accompanied  by  the  tabor; 
cascades  on  every  sides,  even  under  the  caves  of  the 
crest  of  a  hill  on  which  the  houses,  piled  one  over  the 


Tn^OLI.  405 

other,  seem  about  to  be  launched  into  the  abyss ; 
below  terraces,  the  sheer  rock  ;  finally  on  the  side  of 
a  cavernous  arch,  a  stream  shooting  forth  in  three 
leaps  -with  frightful  uproar — such  is  Tivoli. 

On  the  rocks  above  the  falls  is  the  circular  Greek 
Temple  of  Hercules,*  as  well  as  the  little  square  Tem- 
ple of  the  Sibyl,  both  standing  on  the  edge  of  the 
precipice.  Nothing  coidd  be  more  charming  on  these 
denuded  rocks  than  the  rotunda,  which  is  earlier  than 
Tiberius,  with  its  Corinthian  fluted  columns  support- 
ing an  entablature,  adorned  with  festoons  and  buc- 
rania.  Its  execution  is  of  extreme  delicacy,  while 
its  situation  enables  us  to  contrast  the  rugged  aspects 
of  nature  with  the  refinements  of  art.  It  was  mider 
the  foundations  of  this  temple  that,  until  1826,  the 
great  cascade  of  the  Anio  still  poured  its  waters  ;  an 
inundation,  however,  which  occurred  in  that  year 
carried  away  the  upper  sluice  and  unchained  such  a 
deluge  over  the  town,  thus  perched  on  the  brim  of  an 
abyss,  that  the  swollen  torrent  swept  away  a  whole 
cluster  of  houses.  In  order  to  save  the  ancient  buildings, 
it  was  necessary  to  turn  this  terrible  scourge  aside, 
which  was  done  by  digging  a  covered  channel  for  the 
Anio  in  the  heart  of  Monte  Catillo.  But  only  the 
main  sheet  of  water  flows  there  :  the  town  is  placed 
as  it  were  over  a  sieve,  from  all  sides  of  the  hill  the 
waters  seek  an  escape  ;  like  columns  from  a  besieged 

*  Or  of  the  Sibyl,  or  of  Vesta. 


406  KOME. 

town  making  a  furious  sortie.  Falling  in  little  cas- 
cades through  a  carpet  of"  thick  verdure,  it  is  only 
at  the  opening  of  the  valley  that  the  scattered  waters 
proceed  to  reunite  compactly  in  the  channel  of  the 
Teverone.  To  heighten  the  splendor  of  this  spec- 
tacle, each  elevated  point  is  crowned  with  a  monu- 
ment of  the  Renaissance  or  of  antiquity  :  there  is  the 
convent  which  has  replaced  the  house  of  Catullus;  there 
is  the  so-called  villa  of  Maecenas,  a  vast  mass  of  ruins 
which  were  once  the  great  Temple  of  Hercules  Vic- 
tor ;  there  are  the  green  campaniles  of  the  house  of 
Ferrara,  the  highest  cypresses  in  the  world ;  farther 
on  are  the  much-contested  villa  of  Horace,  and  the 
mcontestable  fortress  of  the  Varus  who  let  his  legions 
be  massacred. 

As  soon  as  you  arrive  you  are  impatient  to  see 
everything ;  and  hardly  has  your  eye  taken  in  the 
view  from  the  little  hotel  of  the  Sibyl,  where  so  many 
travellers  have  perched  themselves,  than  you  pass 
through  the  house  to.  plunge  immediately,  with  or 
without  a  guide,  into  a  sort  of  perpendicular  laby- 
rinth. The  descent  to  the  cascade  by  a  winding  path- 
way is  most  entertaining,  so  much  has  time  cut  and 
slashed  the  rocks  and  complicated  the  vegetation. 
Galleries,  niches,  grottoes,  porches,  have  been  worked 
m  the  tufa,  which  is  all  honeycombed  with  pigeon- 
holes, in  and  out  of  which  fly  black  pigeons.  Help- 
ing the  work  of  men,  the  waters  have  fashioned 
aqueducts ;  they  have  excavated,  and  then  petrified, 


TTVOLI.  407 

tree-trunks  in  which  rivulets  make  their  way.  Al- 
pine plants  wed  with  those  of  Greece  ;  the  acanthus 
with  the  erodium,  the  myrtle  with  the  cyclamen. 

The  inspirations  of  antiquity  and  of  the  palace  of 
Armida  erected  by  Tasso  lend  a  strange  charm  to  the 
villa  of  the  Cardinal  Hippolytus  d'Este,  uncle  of  that 
Eleonora  whose  beauty  was  so  fatal  to  poor  Tor- 
quato.  With  its  grottoes  of  mosaic  where  the  water 
falls  in  echoing  drops,  its  pieces  of  green  water  where 
the  lotus  languishes,  and  its  theatrical  magnificence, 
this  fairyland  produces  the  impression  of  a  palace  of 
romance  and  adventure. 

Between  Tivoli  and  Hadrian's  Villa,  at  the  head 
of  the  plain  in  the  last  recess  of  the  mountain,  you 
discover  a  host  of  subjects  worked  by  Claude  and  Van 
Blomen,  and  nearly  all  the  backgrounds  of  Poussin ; 
the  younger  schools,  beginning  with  Joseph  Vernet, 
have  all  illustrated  this  district.  We  made  our  way 
down  to  it  the  next  day,  by  the  slope  opposite  the  cas- 
catelle  which  you  see  on  your  left,  as,  from  the  Avind- 
ing  glades  through  Avhich  you  pass,  you  Avatch  the 
many  changes  in  the  outlines  of  Tivoli,  crowned  by 
still  loftier  crests. 

When  Hadrian  on  his  return  from  Syria  which  he 
had  governed,  from  Athens  where  he  had  been  archon, 
from  the  Avild  regions  of  Britain  and  Armorica  which 
he  had  explored  as  a  traveller,  from  Juda?a  which  he 
had  held  subject,  from  Asia  Minor  and  Egypt  which 
he  had  studied  as  an  archseologist — when  this  crowned 


408     •  KOME. 

patron  of  all  tourists,  wearied  with  the  toils  of  em- 
pire and  travel,  wanted  to  arrange  his  collections,  he 
laid  out  in  gardens  some  leagues  of  a  country  that 
was  varied  with  many  dells  and  slopes.  To  find,  as 
in  an  album  of  souvenirs,  what  had  charmed  him  in 
his  journeys  over  the  face  of  the  world,  he  bade  his 
architects  reproduce  the  Academy,  the  Lyceum,  the 
Prytaneium,  the  Poecile  of  Athens  ;  the  Temple  of 
Serapis  at  Canopus,  a  theatre  at  Corinth,  and  the 
Pyramids  of  Giseh.  He  even  had  Tartarus  executed 
just  as  Homer  had  described  it,  ^'efiam  Inferos Jinxit" 
says  Spartianus ;  and  the  Elysian  fields  as  Virgil 
dreamed  of  them.  Thanks  to  the  topography  of  the 
district  and  its  richness,  he  succeeded,  by  excavating 
green  basins  and  transplanting  mountains,  in  creating 
a  second  time  that  wonder  of  Thessaly — the  Vale  of 
Tempo,  where  the  river  Peneus  under  its  mighty 
trees  hid  from  Olympus  the  pranks  of  Pan,  unveUed 
by  Ovid. 

It  was  from  Hadrian's  Villa  that  the  collection  of 
philosophers  assembled  in  the  Vatican  came  5  hence 
came  also  the  Antinoiis,  a  set  of  Egyptian  statues,  a 
menagerie  of  animals  in  marble,  the  four  pillars  in 
porphyry  of  the  Ciborium  of  S.  Maria  Maggiore  and 
its  thirty-eight  Ionic  columns  of  cipollino  polished 
like  ivory;  even  the  Medicean  Venus  is  said  by 
some  authorities  to  have  been  found  here,  and  not, 
as  is  usually  stated,  in  the  Pescheria  Vecchia.  The 
Faun  in  rosso  antico  of  the  Capitol,  and  the  Adonis 


HADRIA^^'S  VILLA.  409 

of  the  Villa  Albani,  have  shimbered  too  amid  these 
thickets. 

By  Caracalla's  time  this  subHrae  madness  of 
Hadrian  had  become  a  mere  store-room ;  while  after 
Totila,  who  besieged  Tivoli,  it  became  a  quarry.  Its 
gardens,  in  turn  abandoned  and  restored  to  cultiva- 
tion, owe  to  these  changes  of  fortune  an  aspect  of 
wildness  which  rises  to  the  majesty  of  real  nature  : 
its  trees  are  enormous ;  but  under  the  meadow-lands 
you  divine  substructures,  and  vaulted  abysses  rise 
from  the  turf. 


4.10  EOME. 


CHAPTER    XXIII. 

No  one,  that  I  know  of,  has  ever  verified  the  state- 
ment that  the  Vatican  contains  eleven  thousand 
rooms,  and  if  it  is  true,  no  pontiff  has  ever  visited 
them  all :  what  is  certain  is  that  among  this  assem- 
blage of  palaces  belonging  to  all  ages,  and  Avhere 
Bramante,  Raphael,  Pirro  Ligorio,  Fontana,  Maderno, 
Bernini,  and  so  many  others  have  worked,  can  be 
counted  twenty  courts,  and  that  to  circulate  among 
them  they  have  had  to  construct  two  hundred  and 
eight  staircases. 

The  Vatican  museums  form  so  vast  a  labyrinth 
that,  before  getting  ourselves  involved  in  them,  it 
would  be  better  to  take  as  a  prelude  the  Librekia 
Vaticana.  a  broad  nave,  ending  in  the  middle  of  a 
long  transverse  gallery,  leading  out  of  the  Borgian 
apartments,  Avhere  since  1840  have  been  deposited 
in  addition  to  the  MSS.  a  considerable  portion  of  the 
printed  books,  now  reaching  the  number  of  100,500. 
It  was  Sixtus  V.  who  caused  Domenico  Fontana  to 
construct  this  gorgeous  casket  for  those  precious 
jewels  which  form  the  glory  and  pride  of  the  Vatican 
Library,  and  give  it  a  value  above  all  other  libraries 
of  the  world, — the  collection  of  MSS.  numbering  up- 


THE  VATICAN  LIBRARY.     ^  411 

wards  of  25,000  and  dating  back  as  far  as  the  fifth 
century.  All  ages  and  all  peoples  of  Europe  and 
Asia  have  furnished  their  contingent  to  this  treasure. 
It  is  to  be  regretted  that,  to  furnish  us  with  striking 
points  of  comparison,  Pliny  did  not  transmit  the 
numerical  inventory  of  the  first  library  of  Rome, 
founded  for  his  contemporaries  by  Asinius  Pollio,  who 
placed  in  it  the  statue  of  Varro,  while  that  writer  was 
still  living. 

The  apartment  is  of  ideal  magnificence ;  all  is  ar- 
ranged so  as  to  give  a  feast  to  the  eyes.  While  in 
places  like  the  Bodleian  at  Oxford,  and  still  more 
that  typographical  cemetery  in  the  Rue  Richelieu, 
the  people  Avho  write,  as  well  as  those  who  read,  are 
overwhelmed  by  the  sight  of  a  great  mass  of  books 
piled  up  over  their  heads,  which  they  will  never  be 
able  to  know,  and  which  prove  the  vanity  of  compos- 
ing more  ;  at  the  Vatican  you  do  not  see  a  single 
volume.  It  is  within  a  multitude  of  gilded  and  illu- 
minated presses,  a  really  magical  decoration,  that  are 
concealed  the  nine  thousand  manuscripts  of  Nicholas 
v.,  and  the  collection  of  the  learned  Fulvio  Orsini, 
who  in  his  childhood  begged  alms  ;  that  of  the  Bene- 
dictines of  Bobbio,  so  rich  in  palimpsests  ;  that  of  the 
Castle  of  Heidelberg,  stripped  by  Maximilian  of  Ba- 
varia, chief  of  the  Catholic  league ;  the  substance  of 
the  Libreria  of  the  Dukes  of  Urbino,  collected  by 
Guid'  Ubaldo  of  Montefeltro,  and  increased  by  the 
Delia  Rovere  ;  the  fine  books  of  Christina  of  Sweden; 


412  KOME. 

the  library  of  the  Ottobuoiii,  commenced  by  that  Pope 
x\lexander  VIII. ,  Avho,  having  in  his  old  age  enriched 
his  kinsmen,  gave  as  his  reason,  ^^Soti'  gla  le  venti-tre  e 
messo  ;''^  the  Capponi  collection,  bequeathed  in  1746 
by  the  Marquis  Alexander,  Avho,  in  his  quality  of 
Foriere  niaggiore,  was  charged  with  organizing  the 
Capitoline  Museum  for  Clement  XII.,  and  who  en- 
riched the  Kircher  collection  Avith  so  fine  a  bequest ; 
the  complex  cabinet  of  the  Cardinal  Zelada,  another 
librarian ;  finally,  the  Greek  manuscripts  of  the  con- 
vent of  Grotta  Ferrata,  and  those  of  Cardinal  Mai, 
acquired  by  Pius  IX.  There  are  eighteen  Slav 
manuscripts,  ten  from  China,  tAventy-two  from  India, 
thirteen  from  Armenia ;  two  from  the  old  land  of  the 
Hberians ;  eighty  in  Coptic,  and  one  from  Samaria ; 
seventy-one  from  ^^^thiopia  ;  five  hundred  and  ninety 
of  Hebrew  origin,  and  four  hundred  and  fifty-nine  of 
Syrian  ;  sixty-four  from  Turkey,  seven  hundred  and 
eighty-seven  from  Arabia,  and  sixty-five  from  Persia, 
illustrated  with  fine  miniatures. 

After  crossing  the  office  of  the  copyists,  the  vaulted 
ceiling  of  which  is  decorated  in  imitation  of  antique 
paintings  found  in  subterranean  constructions  (groffe), 
and  casting  a  glance  at  the  Sibyls  of  Marco  da  Faenza, 
enlivened  by  some  landscapes  of  Paul  Brill,  you  enter 
the  great  chamber  constructed  by  Sixtus  V. ;  and  as 
the  modest  entrance  (a  small  iron  dot)r  to  the  left  in 
the  gallery  of  Inscriptions)  has  not  at  all  prepared 
you  for  such  splendor,  you  stop  for  a  moment  on  the 


THE  VATICAN  LIBRARY.  413 

threshold,  dazzled.  Decorated,  illuminated,  painted, 
gilded,  furnished  like  a  boudoir,  a  reliquary,  this 
hall  Avhich  extends  in  luminous  perspective  before 
your  eyes  is  scarcely  less  than  lifty  feet  wide  by  two 
hundred  and  twenty  feet  long.  Seven  large  pillars, 
covered  with  frescoes,  and  panels  filled  Avith  minia- 
tures, divide  it  into  two  aisles ;  on  the  buffet  is  ex- 
posed a  collection  of  Etruscan  vases.  Viviani,  Sal- 
viati  of  Florence,  Cesare  di  Nebbia,  Salimbeni  of 
Sienna,  covered  these  Avails,  friezes,  and  A^aults  Avith 
instructiA^e,  animated,  and  graceful  frescoes  (those  of 
Ventura  Salimbeni  especially). 

This  is  all  the  idea  I  can  giA'e  you  of  the  Vatican 
Library.  Except  a  fcAV  papyri  and  tAvo  inscriptions 
or  legends  in  among  the  paintings,  I  had  not  seen  a 
line  of  writing  nor  discovered  the  back  of  a  single 
book.  It  Avould  be  Avell  could  the  diplomatic  efforts 
of  the  A'arious  nations  procure  a  more  liberal  set  of 
regulations  ;  but  if  they  ever  do  undertake  to  handle 
this  matter,  it  Avill  be  for  France  to  interfere  Avith 
some  deference,  for  in  1799  our  countrymen  pillaged 
the  medal  case  of  Queen  Christina ;  and  had  Ave  not 
a  fcAV  years  after  decreed  the  robbery  of  the  manu- 
scripts of  Rome  by  the  poAver  of  might,  it  is  probable 
that  the  pontifical  court  Avould  haA^e  less  repugnance 
to  reveal  its  riches. 

The  Gallery  of  Pictures,  transferred  m  1857  from 
the  Borgian  apartments  to  the  top  of  the  Vatican 
Loggie,  ranks  as  a  Avonder,  because  it  is  composed  of 


414  ROME. 

about  forty  works,  each  signed  with  a  great  name. 
Pins  VII.  who  instituted  it,  placed  there,  in  1816,  the 
pictures  restored  to  Italy  by  France  after  the  rob- 
beries of  the  first  empire ;  since  then  the  pontiffs 
have  enriched  the  collection  from  time  to  time  with 
gems,  more  than  one  of  which  is  due  to  the  munifi- 
cence of  Pius  IX. 

One  of  the  most  remarkable  pictures  is  the  Corona- 
tion of  the  Virgin,  Avhich  Raphael  executed  in  1502 
for  the  Benedictines  of  Perugia.  It  is  a  Perugino 
free  from  leanness,  in  which  Raphael  discloses  him- 
self with  unconscious  originality  ;  and  where  you  can 
recognize  higher  aspirations  than  in  the  work  of 
Perugino.  Still  the  Virgin  on  the  Throne,  by  the 
latter,  surrounded  by  four  Saints  at  prayer,  is  dis- 
tinctly a  masterpiece  :  we  have  a  conviction  that  the 
artist  has  here  given  complete  expression  to  his  idea. 
It  is  the  apogee  of  the  art  which  preceded  the  Dios- 
curi of  the  Renaissance,  and  perhaps  Perugino's  mas- 
terpiece ;  containing  exquisite  figures,  powerful  color- 
ing, and  a  fine  background  of  cleverly  sketched 
buildings.  He  painted  it  for  the  Palazzo  Comunale 
of  his  native  town  ;  France,  who  carried  it  off,  did 
not  care  to  keep  it :  it  was  one  of  those  unappreciated 
gems,  with  which  the  Thermidorian  school  reproached 
Bonaparte  for  loading  his  baggage-wagons. 

Out  of  the  forty-two  pictures  of  this  gallery,  the 
Louvre  received  and  then  gave  back  one-and-twenty. 
But  the  works  were  not  restored  by  the  popes  to  the 


Marriage    of   S.    Catherine   in   Vatican    Gallery, 
Murillo 


THE  VATICAN  PICTrRE  GALLERY.  415 

cities  and  establishments  which  had  lost  them  :  the 
convents  and  basilicas  of  Rome,  the  cities  of  Perugia, 
Pesaro,  Foligno,  even  the  sanctuary  of  Loretto,  re- 
mained stripped  for  the  benefit  of  the  Vatican :  is  not 
this  abuse  of  sovereignty  rather  like  the  excesses  of 
victory  ?  Let  us  also  observe  that  the  paintings 
which  in  1797  were  the  objects  of  these  spoliations 
of  ours  were  by  preference  academic  works  of  Guer- 
cino,  Valentin,  Nicholas  Poussin,  Guido  Reni,  or  An- 
drew Sacchi.  The  Virgin  and  8.  Thomas  of  Reni  is 
one  of  the  most  mediocre  productions  you  could  well 
find ;  yet  they  dragged  it  from  Pesaro  to  Paris,  and 
the  Italians  brought  it  back  with  honor  from  Paris  to 
the  Vatican,  instead  of  restoring  it  to  Pesaro,  so  much 
did  the  name  of  Guido  dazzle  people  !  It  may  be  in- 
teresting to  make  out  a  list  of  our  compulsory  resti- 
tutions after  1815.  Out  of  twenty-one  pictures  that 
were  sent  back,  Fra  Angelico,  Poussin,  Valentin, 
Guercino,  Michael  Angelo  da  Caravaggio,  and  Giulio 
Romano,  associated  with  Penni  called  II  Fattore,  were 
each  responsible  for  one  ;  Baroccio,  Andrew  Sacchi, 
and  Guido,  for  two  ;  Perugino  three  ;  Raphael  five, 
among  them  that  famous  Transfiguration  which  occu- 
pies a  room  apart,  feeing  the  Communion  of  S.  Jerome 
by  Domenichino,  a  cardinal  piece  which  we  had  also 
to  restore,  and  which,  owing  to  a  traditional  admira- 
tion, caused  amateurs  more  bitter  regrets  fifty  years 
since  than  the  sacrifice  of  all  the  rest  of  the  gallery  ; 
in  the  background  at  the  bottom  of  the  room  is  a  pict- 


416  ROME. 

lire  wliich  the  fine  world  looks  at  far  less — the  Ma- 
donna da  Foligno. 

Raphael's  Transfiguration  is  assuredly  a  fine  pict- 
ure, although  the  author  has  emancipated  himself  in 
it  from  that  unity  of  action,  which  is  cried  up  as  a 
general  thesis  by  the  classic  admirers  of  this  master ; 
they  have  had  to  admit  that  it  is  a  double  vision  of  a 
poem  in  the  clouds,  and  a  drama  with  its  peripeteia 
on  the  earth.  Jesus,  transformed  in  the  sky  between 
Moses  and  Elias,  the  mystic  figures  of  the  apostles, 
the  kneeling  bodies  of  S.  Laurence  and  S.  Julian,  the 
patrons  of  Cardinal  Giulio  de  Medici  who  was  des- 
tined to  become  Clement  VII. — the  whole  of  this 
scene  on  Tabor  goes  back  further  even  than  the 
youth  of  Raphael,  to  the  primitive  Florentine  tradi- 
tions ;  only  the  prestige  of  an  extremely  noble  style 
and  design  has  prevented  the  affiliation  from  being 
more  striking.  For  this  evangelical  legend  of  the 
Transfiguration  Raphael  took  his  theme  from  the 
first  door  of  Ghiberti,  and  Ghiberti  himself  found  the 
arrangement  in  Giotto.  There  is  a  shocking  contrast 
when  we  see  in  the  same  frame  two  episodes,  one 
flowing  from  Gothic  traditions,  while  the  other  repre- 
sents the  absolutely  opposed  doctrines  which  were 
cried  up  by  Vasari  under  the  influence  of  Michael 
Angelo,  and  accepted  by  Giulio  Romano,  who  assisted 
in  the  execution  of  the  Drama  of  the  One  Possessed, 
connected  by  an  effort  with  the  Transfiguration,  In 
this  lower  part,  where  the  coloring  is  harder, — where 


THE  VATICAN  PICTURE  GALLERY.  417 

the  theatrically  posed  figures  are  thinking  of  the 
spectator,  where  feeling  and  nature  are  replaced  by 
impression  and  effect, — before  this  composition  Avhere 
Raphael  may  contend  with  the  masters  of  succeeding 
ages,  you  acknowledge  his  skill,  but  you  no  longer 
enjoy  his  genius.  It  is  with  some  curiosity  that  you 
watch  the  coldly  arranged  convulsions  of  the  little 
possessed  one,  to  whom  his  fiither  sets  an  example  in 
surprising  attitudes  ;  around  them,  everybody  plays 
his  part  as  in  a  tableau  vivant,  and  this  method  is  to 
become  a  law,  for  ever,  it  may  be  ! 

From  the  time  when  Raphael  Mengs  ranked  this 
above  all  other  works  of  Sanzio,  even  to  the  day  when 
Quatremere  de  Quincey  proclaimed  it  the  finest  pict- 
ure in  the  world,  public  taste  came  more  and  more 
under  the  influence  of  such  doctrines  and  this  ex- 
plains the  general  infatuation  for  the  Communion  of 
S.  Jerome.  It  was,  as  has  been  often  enough  re- 
peated, the  only  picture  flt  to  be  compared  with  the 
Transfiguration.  What  a  lesson  for  Raphael,  if  only 
it  had  not  been  posthumous !  Nicholas  Poussin 
ranked  Raphael  and  Domenichino  together  and  placed 
them  above  all  other  painters.  He  considered  the  kS. 
Jerome  to  be  one  of  the  finest  pictures  in  Rome.  If 
we  are  able  to  muster  sufficient  independence  and 
candor  to  shake  off  old  prejudices,  we  will  be  ready 
to  admit  that  the  composition  of  the  S.  Jerome,  too 
evidently  inspired  by  Augustin  Caracci,  is  cold.  Its 
principal  charm  is  derived  from  the  admii*able  land- 

27 


418  ROME. 

scape,  in  the  background  above  which  hover  some 
tolerably  stiff  angels.  But  how  full  of  defects  is  the 
principal  figure  !  The  greenish  body  of  the  dying 
man,  ill-studied  in  design  and  showing  the  ravages  of 
conventional  senility  ;  the  sinking  head  without  a 
halo,  which  shows  no  consciousness  of  the  great 
eucharistic  act,  nor  any  traces  of  what  S.  Jerome  was; 
the  familiarly  benign  expression  of  S.  Ephraim,  bear- 
ing the  viaticum  as  a  nurse  would  present  a  draught ; 
and  the  figure  of  the  Arab,  who  has  nothing  to  do 
with  the  scene,  and  Avho,  they  say,  represents  the 
east ;  finally,  the  utter  absence  in  the  whole  composi- 
tion of  emotion,  of  poetical  faith  in  the  mysteries 
which  are  being  unveiled,  in  the  mysteries  which  it  is 
desired  to  summon  before  us  ....  It  is  a  painting 
executed  with  much  splendor,  but  inferior  in  signifi- 
cance, and  having  a  good  deal  of  theatrical  flashiness. 
It  will  keep  the  rank  it  has  usurped,  Panurge  and 
his  sheep  assure  me. 

It  is  now  time  to  penetrate  into  the  numerous  gal- 
leries consecrated  to  the  masterpieces  of  antique  art. 
We  Avill  start  on  this  long  journey  by  beginning  with 
the  primitive  ages ;  chronology  will  help  us  to  recall 
facts  of  history.  It  is  to  Gregory  XVI.  that  the 
Vatican  owes  two  collections,  which  take  us  back 
even  beyond  historic  times  to  the  origin  of  the  arts 
in  the  farthest  east  and  old  Latium.  Pope  Capellari 
was  a  Venetian  ;  the  establishment  of  the  Egyptian 
museum,  and  the  erection  of  an   Etruscan   museum, 


THE  EGYPTIAN  MUSEUM.  419 

express  the  ideas  of  an  artist  and  a  scholar.  Let  us 
first  make  our  way  through  the  Egyptian  galleries. 

After  getting  together  the  elements  of  this  colossal 
collection,  the  judicious  Gregory  XVI.  undertook  the 
task  of  separating, — so  as  to  make  them  instructive 
for  purposes  of  study, — the  Egyptian  pasticci  that 
fashion  or  caprice  produced  under  the  emperors,  and 
particularly  under  Hadrian.  The  colossal  marble  An- 
tinoils,  that  last-born  of  the  demigods  of  sculpture, 
is  the  most  important  piece  of  this  section  of  the 
museum  ;  it  was  found  in  Hadrian's  Villa.  Like  all 
the  Antinoiises,  this  is  executed  Avith  a  feminine  ex- 
quisiteness  of  rounded  and  velvety  outlines.  It  is  a 
figure  carved  by  a  Greek,  with  the  hieratic  character 
of  the  sacred  royalties  of  Egypt,  and  in  the  attitude 
of  a  Roman  :  this  threefold  character  is  clearly  indi- 
cated. The  Nile,  an  enormous  recumbent  figure,  is 
equally  allied  to  Greek  art. 

After  having  seen  among  the  Egyptians  the  re- 
mains of  an  art  earlier  than  our  written  traditions,  it 
is  well  to  go  and  compare  it  on  the  spot  with  that  of 
the  Etruscans,  of  whose  history  we  are  ignorant.  In 
passing  from  one  to  the  other,  however,  it  is  almost 
impossible  to  help  stopping  in  a  certain  hall  Avhich 
forms  a  vestibide,  and  which,  being  open  on  several 
sides,  with  a  splendid  staircase  in  three  flights  leading 
to  the  galleries,  forms  a  centre  in  a  very  labyrinth  of 
wonders  of  which  you  have  vague  glimpses. 

This  is  called  the  Hall  of  the  Greek  Cross ;  and  is 


420  ROME. 

an  architectural  gem.  The  mosaic  in  the  middle,  the 
red  granites,  the  columns  of  coralline  breccia  and 
green  porphjry  which  support  the  arched  vaulting 
and  lateral  entablatures  of  the  marble  steps  ;  those 
bas-reliefs  set  to  right  and  left  of  the  central  archway; 
the  green  granite  vase  of  the  architrave ;  the  sim- 
plicity of  a  frieze  in  which  lilies,  stars,  and  eagles 
mingle, — detached  pieces  of  the  new  arms  of  the 
good  Pope  Braschi ;  the  Sphinxes  which  guard  the 
stairs ;  the  animation,  the  modest  richness,  the  de- 
light of  visiting  in  an  abode  especially  prepared  for 
them,  the  gods  and  heroes  of  Attica — all  this  seduc- 
tive harmony  and  peaceful  movement  affect  one  with 
a  fulness  of  content  so  rare,  that  a  lively  conviction 
of  the  superiority  of  classic  works  when  brought  to 
such  a  point  of  perfection  is  the  result.  This  sanctu- 
ary where  you  are  surprised  at  not  meeting  Alci- 
biades  and  Phryne,  forms  part  of  the  charming  con- 
structions which  Pius  VI.  intrusted  to  Camporese  and 
Simonetti,  two  artists  of  high  worth,  and  yet  whom 
no  Biography  has  thought  it  worth  while  to  name. 
The  great  doorway  of  the  hall  is  set  up  in  Sienese 
granite ;  its  two  shafts,  supporting  Egyptian  colossi, 
which  serve  as  caryatides,  are  surmounted  by  an  en- 
tablature above  which  are  vases  of  red  granite ;  an  en- 
trance of  severe  beauty,  brightened  by  a  bas-relief 
which  occupies  the  centre.  You  see  those  glorious 
profiles  in  endless  succession,  as  slowly  and  with  eyes 
drawn  in   every  direction  at  once,  you  ascend  the 


THE  ETRUSCAN  MUSEUM.  42  I 

steps  leading  to  the  Etruscan  niuseiinij  the  second 
creation  of  Pope  Grregory  XVI.  This  collection 
being  newer  to  me  struck  me  as  more  curious  than 
the  other. 

Owing  to  tlie  large  number  of  small  objects  which 
have  been  found  belonging  to  everyday  life,  this  gal- 
lery throws  light  on  the  history  of  the  Etruscans,  and 
Sabellians  as  well  perhaps,  just  as  the  Pompeian  mu- 
seum at  Naples  does  on  that  of  the  Romans.  I  ob- 
served that  in  the  domestic  carvings,  such  as  bas- 
reliefs,  small  bronzes,  terra  cottas,  and  funeral  monu- 
ments, the  sentiment  of  the  ideally  or  conventionally 
beautiful  is,  just  as  among  the  peoples  of  the  west 
during  the  Middle  Ages,  made  subordinate  to  anima- 
tion of  expression  5  while  in  the  decoration  of  ce- 
ramic works  there  appears  a  certain  suggestion  of 
heroic  form,  made  slighter,  it  is  true,  by  an  effort  to 
put  the  subjects  on  the  stage  in  a  clear  and  definite 
action.  To  bring  out  these  characteristics  by  means 
of  contrast,  they  have  placed  Greek  vases  by  the  side 
of  the  Etruscan  ones  Avith  white  grounds,  Avhich  are 
the  most  ancient — two  distinct  sources  that  were  for 
long  confounded  together.  The  potiche  of  the  Edu- 
cation of  Bacchus,  the  great  tazze  or  paterse  of  the 
Argonautic  series,  are  like  our  paintings  and  statues 
of  the  Roman  period,  but  endowed  with  more  ele- 
gance I  a  superioi'ity  of  taste  that  seems  to  be  in- 
herent in  the  Ausonian  soil. 

It  is   the  physiognomy,  especially  of  most  of  the 


422  ROME. 

Busts,  that  attracts  you.  There  are  two  in  terra 
cotta,  which  you  would  suppose  to  have  been  moulded 
after  blonde  Englishwomen  by  some  pupil  of  Law- 
rence. In  a  bronze  statue  found  at  Todi,  Avhich  rep- 
resents a  Avarrior  Avith  a  winged  helmet  on  his  head, 
and  a  doublet  under  his  cuirass — a  superb  head,  a 
true  attitude,  legs  firmly  designed,  you  seem  to  see 
an  jEginetan  equipped  like  one  of  our  crusading 
barons.  The  genii,  and  the  Avinged  and  grotesque 
divinities,  have  an  aspect  so  fundamentally  eastern, 
that  they  carry  the  mind  back  to  the  distant  ages  of 
India.  There  is  also  to  be  seen  here  a  complete 
Roman  Biga,  or  two-wheeled  car,  in  wood  covered 
with  copper. 


THE  LAPIDARY  MUSEUM.  423 


CHAPTER    XXIV. 

In  paying  liomage  to  the  persevering  liberality 
which  has  endowed  the  universe  Avith  its  most  mag- 
nificent musemii,  we  cannot  help  pointing  out  to  the 
recognition  and  gratitude  of  the  nations  four  Pontiffs 
of  our  own  age,  who  in  order  to  accomplish  so  great 
a  work  were  obliged  to  surmount  many  obstacles. 
These  missionaries  of  art  are  Pius  VI.,  Pius  VIL, 
Gregory  XVI.,  and  Pius  IX.  We  should  add  Clem- 
ent XIV.,  had  he  by  beginning  the  Clementine  col^ 
lection  done  more  than  simply  yield  to  the  impulse 
of  his  treasurer-general,  Cardinal  Braschi,  who  was 
shortly  to  become  Pius  VI. 

A  long  vaulted  hall,  Avhich  Bramante  built,  con- 
tains the  lapidary  museum  of  Pius  VII.  At  the 
bottom  a  grating  cuts  the  wide  corridor  in  two ;  it  is 
the  barrier  which  limits  this  suburb.  Tombstones 
and  sarcophagi  are  drawn  up  in  a  double  row  on 
either  side  ;  the  Avails  are  a  veritable  mosaic  of  in- 
scriptions, succeeding  one  another  over  a  length  of 
nearly  six  hundred  feet ;  all  are  classed  into  kinds, 
centuries,  creeds,  purposes.  On  one  side  extend,  in 
rows  one  above  the  other,  family  epitaphs ;  then 
those  of  friends,    consular   personages,    patricians  of 


424  KOME. 

imperial  lineage ;  finally  people  belonging  to  the 
different  trades.  Between  the  windows  are  arranged 
the  sarcophagi  as  Avell  as  the  inscriptions  of  new-born 
Christianityj  pages  taken  from  the  Catacombs  and 
written  in  Latin  or  Greek  ;  sometimes  in  a  hybrid 
tongne  and  illustrated  by  symbolical  designs.  These 
inscriptions  are  usually  short  but  expressive ;  as  we 
read  them  we  still  feel  the  throb  of  anguish  of  beings, 
turned  to  air  these  eighteen  centuries  past. 

Nothing  could  be  more  instructive  than  the  bas- 
reliefs  devoted  to  the  craftsmen  of  a  time  when  every 
dealer  was  an  artisan.  We  see  them  in  the  work- 
shop in  the  midst  of  their  tools  ;  the  cutler  forges, 
tempers,  beats  the  iron  ;  hatchets,  pincers,  scissors, 
are  hung  np  in  the  shop,  where  we  see  knives  in 
rows,  and,  lower  down,  the  counter  Avith  its  draw- 
ers. The  architect  has  the  compass  in  his  hand;  the 
potter  or  the  locksmith  handles  the  Avheel  or  the  file. 
In  the  middle  of  the  gallery,  on  the  pagan  side,  where 
the  inscriptions  bear  the  impress  of  the  same  man- 
ners, you  pause  instinctively  before  the  enormous 
lions'  heads  Avhich  decorate  a  sarcophagus  contem- 
porary with  Titus,  on  wdiich  dance  in  escort  upon 
Dionysius  draped  Bacchantes,  of  a  charming  style. 
Scenic  masks  fill  up  the  spaces. 

The  first  gallery  of  the  Chiaramonti  museum, 
founded  by  Pius  VII.,  contains  nearly  eight  hundred 
works  of  art ;  the  heroic  figures,  the  tombs  Avith  their 
masks,  the  portraits,  the  gods  accommodated  to  Latin 


THE  CHIARAMONTI  MUSEUM.  425 

rites,  all  tell  you  the  ideal  history  of  Rome,  but  writ- 
ten in  Greek ;  not  one  Avork  is  a  product  of  the  soil  •, 
these  objects  of  elegance  and  beauty  are  the  tribute 
paid  to  the  conquering  race  by  the  vanquished  of 
Athens  and  Argos  ;  the  sons  of  Homer  might  teach 
poetry,  but  never  sculpture,  to  the  soldiers  who  had 
to  subdue  a  world.  The  Romans  were  masters  only 
in  architecture ;  it  was  a  part  of  the  duties  of  the 
legislators  of  property  to  teach  nations  the  art  of 
construction. 

To  comment  on  all  the  marbles  in  these  galleries 
would  be  like  paraphrasing  a  catalogue,  so  I  shall 
only  mention  those  that  remain  in  my  memory. 
First  comes  a  bust  of  Julius  C?esar,  the  head  draped, 
on  the  point  of  sacrificing  as  Pontifex  Maximus. 
Csesar  is  here  represented  in  the  last  years  of  his 
life ;  his  face,  seamed  and  furrowed,  betrays  a 
supreme  lassitude,  the  dry  expression  of  a  man  who 
has  exhausted  everything.  No  words  could  convey 
the  contemptuous  majesty  which,  in  this  luminous 
and  ruined  head,  unites  with  a  mixture  of  nobility, 
pedantry,  and  moral  desolation.  How  is  it  that 
they  have  not  made  a  copy  of  a  masterpiece,  which 
transmits  to  us  so  profound  a  revelation  ?  Far- 
ther on,  the  fine  sarcophagus  of  Juniu^s  Evhodus 
and  his  wife,  found  in  the  excavations  at  Ostia,  rep- 
resents the  legend  of  Alcestis,  copied  from  older  bas- 
reliefs.  This  romance  of  conjugal  love  traced  on  the 
marble  is  a  homage  of  Evhodus   "  to  his  very  dear 


426  EOME. 

and  very  blessed  wife,  Metilia  Acte."  These  people, 
who  had  little  dread  of  death,  prepared  tombs  most 
tastefully  adorned,  and  gallantly  offered  them  like 
madrigals  to  the  beloved  object.  Close  by  is  a  mag- 
nificent Urn,  where  you  see  the  grapes  being  tram- 
pled in  a  vat,  and  above,  Bacchus  seated  with  Ariadne 
— a  work  of  the  time  of  the  Antonines.  The  colos- 
sal bust  of  Pallas  taken  from  old  Laurentum  deserves  a 
full  description.  The  Athlete  in  Repose,  which  the 
waves  of  the  sea  rolled  to  the  port  of  Antium,  where 
it  was  found,  is  a  figure  of  peculiar  elegance ;  the 
bas-relief  of  Azzia  Agela  shows  us,  as  though  sur- 
prised in  the  midst  of  the  habits  of  domestic  life,  the 
deceased  seated  in  a  triclinium  before  her  work-table. 
Near  a  colossal  head  of  Octavianus,  represented  young, 
is  a  statue  of  his  successor  at  the  opening  of  his  reign ; 
Tiberius  is  seated,  clothed  in  the  chlamys,  knotted 
over  the  shoulder,  and  crowned  with  oak-leaves ;  he 
holds  in  one  hand  a  long  sceptre,  while  the  other  rests 
on  the  Parazonium.  This  statue,  found  at  Veil,  is 
splendid  ;  the  aristocratic  beauty  of  the  features,  and 
the  kindly  animation  of  the  expression,  give  to  the 
head  a  fascination  that  throws  suspicion  on  the  vera- 
city of  Tacitus.  The  unique  bust  of  Julia,  the  daugh- 
ter of  Augustus,  was  exhumed,  mider  Pius  IX.,  at 
Ostia,  in  the  same  place  as  the  youthful  Augustus  in 
Parian  marble,  the  most  delicate  likeness  of  the  first 
of  the  emperors. 

Let  us  be  on  our   guard  against  incarnating  the 


THE  CHIARAMONTI  MUSEUM.  427 

supple  spirit  of  Cicero  in  that  big,  good-natured  face, 
which  Ave  see  in  plaster  in  our  French  museums  and 
provincial  schools.  The  real  Marcus  Tullius,  agree- 
ing with  the  authentic  Greek  medal  published  by 
Father  S.  Clement,  is  that  lean  head  with  meagre 
cheeks,  and  penetrating,  caustic  expression ;  a 
strangely  living  face,  whose  expressive  lines  The- 
mis and  Apollo  seem  to  have  hollowed  together. 
The  great  man  has  not  on  his  nose  the  traditional 
mole  ;  for  he  was  called  Cicero  like  his  father  and 
like  his  brother  Quintus,  and  not  because  he  had  a 
wart  like  a  vetch  on  his  face.  The  true  likeness  in 
the  Chiaramonti  museum  is  numbered  422 ;  and  we 
have  no  cast  of  it. 

A  curious  statue,  the  unique  portrait  of  a  Csesar 
whose  medals  are  most  rare,  is  that  of  Diadumen- 
ianus,  the  son  of  Macrinus,  whom  Heliogabalus's 
soldiers  massacred  at  the  age  of  sixteen,  ^lius 
Lampridius  describes  the  degree  to  which  the  army 
was  dazzled,  when  for  the  first  time  this  youth  ap- 
peared in  the  imperial  vestments,  '^siderlus  et  ccelestis.'''' 
The  colors  of  life  play  in  his  cheeks ;  the  sculptor 
having  warmed  the  marble  by  investing  it  with  cer- 
tain effects  of  painting.  Here,  close  by  his  side,  is 
another  Tiberius,  of  Pentelican  marble,  still  very 
young,  half-naked,  with  drapery  treated  by  a  very 
skilfid  hand ;  more  real,  this  one  has  an  air  of  aston- 
ishment, almost  of  brutishness  ;  the  man  of  Capreai 
seems  to  show  himself.     The  head  of  Antoninus  Pius 


428  ROME. 


is  of  a  fine  character.  The  Cato  (510),  an 
empty  face  with  hanging  lower  lip,  is  apocryphal. 
The  colossal  bust  of  Isis,  "  queen  of  the  elements," 
as  Apuleius  says,  is  a  complete  testimony  as  to  the 
introduction  of  this  worship  among  the  Greeks  in  the 
time  of  the  Ptolemies ;  it  is  of  Pentelican  marble. 
Near  the  draped  bust  of  Annius  Verus  in  his  infancy 
(559),  there  is  another,  the  free  execution  of  which, 
stripped  of  the  mere  process  of  the  schools,  deserves 
a  glance  ;  they  suppose  it  to  be  Domitius  ^Enobarbus, 
the  happy  sire  of  Nero.  Let  us  observe  also  a  grand 
statue  of  an  emperor,  Avhose  decapitation  forces  him 
to  be  anonymous,  and  between  whose  shoulders,  in 
accordance  with  a  too  frequent  practice,  they  have 
planted  the  head  of  Claudius.  Although  without 
arms  or  head,  another  statue  has  forms  of  such  un- 
usual beauty,  that  we  recognize  in  it  the  fragment  of 
a  rare  piece  of  workmanship  ;  the  set  of  the  drapery 
assigns  it  to  a  fine  epoch  of  Grecian  art.  Treated 
fancifidly  and  Avith  great  purity,  the  Ganymede  car- 
ried away  by  an  Eagle  is  of  irresistible  effect ;  the 
wings  of  the  metamorphosed  Jupiter  form  a  little 
pavilion  over  the  head  of  the  tearful  giovineUo : 
^^  They  often  asked  the  sculptor  Leucares,"  Pliny  tells 
us,  "for  a  reproduction  of  this  most  successful  statue." 
It  was  near  the  mole  of  Csecilia  Metella  that  they  dis- 
covered the  bust  698,  bearing  the  name  of  Cicero  : 
it  is  only  mentioned  here  to  prevent  its  being  confused 
with  the  real  likeness  spoken  of  above.     Against  the 


THE  BEACCIO  NUOVO.  429 

preceding  panel  the  important  sarcophagus  of  Nonius, 
in  marble  from  Luna,  deserves  mention,  though  it  is 
mediocre  from  an  artistic  point  of  view,  and  contem- 
porary with  Caracalla.  These  Nonii  were  a  family 
of  freedmen,  grown  rich  in  the  oil  trade,  and  having 
on  the  road  to  Ostia  their  villa  and  sepulchral  mole. 
Between  the  pilasters  of  the  sarcophagus  they  have 
cut  a  mola  asinaria  ;  only  here  the  ass  is  replaced  by 
a  mare.  The  bas-relief  shows  the  implements  used 
in  squeezing  the  olives ;  the  hollow  vessel  for  collecting 
the  liquid,  the  quartarius  and  sextarius  for  measuring 
it,  the  pierced  trowel  for  keeping  back  the  kernels 
and  the  pulp,  panniers  and  baskets — everything  in 
fact  connected  with  the  business. 

When  you  have  once  passed  through  this  line  but 
rather  cold  Chiaramonti  gallery,  you  are  perfectly 
ready  for  the  rich  arrangement  of  the  second  hall, 
opening  at  right  angles  from  the  other  by  a  door- 
way flanked  by  two  granite  columns  surmounted  by 
imperial  busts  in  basalt  and  alabaster. 

The  Braccio  Nuovo  was  built  for  a  museum.  The 
architect  was  aware  that  he  would  have  forty-three 
very  important  statues  to  display  in  it.  So  he  divided 
the  length  of  his  gallery  into  twenty-eight  niches,  and 
the  apse  into  fifteen,  and  was  thus  enabled  to  set 
the  statues  in  a  series  of  arches ;  then  before  the 
pilasters  Avhich  separate  them  he  placed  a  row  of  as 
many  busts  on  pillars  of  red  granite.  At  the  inter- 
sections of  the  arches  are  other  busts  supported  on 


430  EOME. 

consoles ;  between  the  frieze  and  the  keys  of  the 
arches  are  bas-reliefs  ;  an  entablature  with  very  pro- 
jecting modillions  serves  as  base  for  the  vaultings, 
ornamented  with  coffer-work  cut  hollow  into  the 
stone,  and  supported  by  twelve  Corinthian  columns 
of  the  finest  cipoUino.  The  pediment  of  each  door 
rests  on  precious  columns  ;  the  light  falls,  amply  dis- 
tributed, upon  charming  mosaic  pavements  ;  in  the 
middle  of  the  gallery  rises  a  Greek  vase  of  black 
basalt  on  a  pedestal  of  red  granite.  Thus  the  gallery 
is  constructed  expressly  for  its  contents,  and  the 
statues  only  form  a  natiiral  decoration. 

One  of  the  most  important  statues  is  that  of  Augus- 
tus, found  at  the  villa  Livia,  in  consequence  of  the 
munificence  of  Pius  IX.,  it  replaces  the  Antinoiis  with 
the  attributes  of  Vertumnus,  which  had  been  restoi'ed 
by  the  pupils  of  Canova.  The  Augustus  is  one  of 
the  good  statues  of  the  Vatican. 

In  another  niche  people  admire  the  statue  of 
Modesty,  a  large  figure  with  a  diadem  on  its  head, 
whence  a  long  veil  falls  back  over  the  peplum,  and 
that  in  turn  over  a  robe  of  heavier  stuff  with  majestic 
folds.  These  three  different  draperies  arranged  over 
one  another  are  admirably  wrought  ;  but  the  hand  is 
heavy,  and  the  head  is  only  tolerably  noble  in  its 
pose  :  both  are  modern  ;  the  head  having  been  taken 
from  medals,  with  a  superior  appreciation  for  antique 
art.  Two  very  singular  statues  facing  one  another, 
the  one  of  Titus,  the  other  of  his  daughter  Julia,  often 


Statue  of  Augustus,  Braccio  Nuovo 


THE  BRACCIO  NUOVO.  431 

stopped  me  by  their  pitiless  reality.  The  son  of 
Vespasian  is  short,  squat,  thickset,  with  a  good- 
humored,  sensual  face  ;  he  wears  big  winter  shoes ; 
his  iigure  and  shape  are  particularly  individual ;  you 
would  recognize  him  from  among  a  thousand,  if  you 
saw  nothing  but  his  back  or  side,  as  if  you  had  lived 
in  intimacy  with  him.  A  hive  of  honey  is  carved  at 
his  feet,  a  panegyric  of  delicate  symbolism.  Fleshy, 
short,  stout,  like  her  father,  Julia  is  of  a  masculine 
ugliness,  cynically  portrayed.  The  Faun  of  the  gar- 
dens of  LucuUus  belongs  to  a  pure  type  of  art,  and 
would  be  a  gem  if  it  had  not  been  so  much  restored ; 
the  Euripides  is  an  authentic  likeness,  a  simple  work, 
old,  and  therefore  of  the  best  style  |  Demosthenes,  in 
a  natural  pose,  with  rather  thin  arms,  a  well  devel- 
oped neck,  a  deep  eye,  a  laborious  brow,  a  lip  on 
which  eloquence  is  stamped,  is  the  figure  of  a  thinker 
and  a  master  of  expression.  Here,  here  truly,  is  the 
orator  of  the  Olynthiacs,  and  not  that  athletic  and 
shorn  visage,  the  portrait  of  some  good  liver,  which 
for  so  many  years  has  been  passed  off  in  our  schools 
of  design  for  a  famous  Greek.  What  a  contrast  with 
that  expressionless  and  morose  Athlete,  in  whose  sup- 
ple and  vigorous  frame  we  recognize  the  reproduction 
of  a  statue  of  Lysippus,  that  which  the  murmurs  of 
the  people  forced  Tiberius  to  restore  to  the  Thermae 
of  Agrippa ! 

There  is  plenty  of  character  and  spirit  in  the  face 
of  Antonius ;  the  man  here  seems   above  his   part ; 


432  ROME. 

the  mouth  especially  has  a  slightly  mocking  delicacy 
expressive  of  a  versatile  intelligence,  he  seems  almost 
of  our  own  time  ;  while  most  unexpectedly  the  mad- 
man who  lost  the  empire  of  the  world  to  foUow  Cleo- 
patra, has  a  look  Avhich  is  rather  profomidly  vicious 
than  sensual.  What  a  contrast  with  the  face  of  Lep- 
idus, — the  head  of  a  bird,  Avith  a  toneless  eye,  a  soft 
brow,  a  retreating  chin  which  throAvs  out  an  inert 
mouth  ;  he  is  too  like  the  part  he  played.  A  fine  and 
curious*  statue  is  the  Nile,  half-recumbent  and  sur- 
rounded by  sixteen  nurslings  at  play  about  his  big 
body,  and  trying  to  climb  up  on  to  it ;  they  represent 
the  ascending  degrees  of  the  fertilizing  overflow  of 
the  stream,  Avhich  to  give  a  prosperous  year  has  to 
mount  sixteen  cubits.  The  sixteenth  seems  to  be 
coming  to  life  out  of  a  basket  of  fruits.  The  base 
represents  ichneumons,  plants,  oxen,  ibises,  and  even 
hippopotamuses.  It  was  under  Leo  X.  that  near  the 
Minerva,  where  Serapis  had  her  temple,  they  ex- 
humed this  splendid  work.  Let  us  also  mention  on 
account  of  their  rarity  the  statues  of  Lucius  Verus, 
of  very  studied  finish  ;  of  Domitian,  Avho  recalls  so 
closely  the  fraternal  persons  of  Titus  and  Jidia  j  and 
a  superb  bust  of  Lmia  marble  representing  Philip  the 
Father,  the  predecessor  of  Decius — a  very  fine  like- 
ness for  the  period.  We  also  pass  a  statue  of  Clau- 
dius, in  which  they  have  only  had  an  arm  to  remake, 
and  on  the  features  of  which  is  plainly  stamped  the 
credulity  of  the  husband  of  Messalina. 


THE  PIO-CLEMENTINE  MUSEUM.  433 

This  is,  as  everybody  will  uiKlerstand,  only  a  feeble 
sketch  of  the  hundred  and  thirty-six  Avorks  of  art  in 
the  Braccio  Nuovo  ;  in  addition  we  may  note  among 
the  bas-reliefs,  a  Marriage  Scene,  the  Triumph  of 
Marcus  Aurelius,  and  that  of  Titus,  in  which  you  see 
better  than  on  the  arch  of  the  Via  Sacra,  the  ordering 
of  the  procession,  the  spoils  of  the  Temple,  those  of 
the  conquered,  and  the  retinue  of  Israelitish  prisoners. 
The  very  mosaics  of  the  pavement  are  important,  es- 
pecially that  representing  the  Travels  of  Ulysses, 
whose  vessel,  having  just  doubled  the  rock  of  Scylla, 
breasts  the  weaves  at  the  point  where  they  hear  the 
song  of  the  Sirens. 

As  on  your  Avay  to  the  Pio-Clementine  Museum 
you  pass  a  second  time  down  the  long  Chiaramonti 
gallery,  the  statues  with  their  rather  bare  surround- 
ings seem  after  the  splendors  of  the  Braccio  Nuovo 
to  be  merely  the  plebs  of  the  Vatican  city  ;  but  this 
avenue  is  an  admirable  preparation  for  the  series 
of  surprises  that  await  you.  One  flight  of  stairs 
leads  to  the  great  musemn,  where  by  a  singular 
contrast  you  come  at  first  to  a  labyrinth  of  small 
chambers,  each  a  sanctuary  for  its  patron  divinity. 
Clement  XIII.  and  Clement  XIV.  began  to  unite 
the  collections  formed  by  their  predecessors  from 
Julius  II.  downwards ;  but  Pius  VI.  is  the  true 
founder  of  the  Pio-Clementine  museum  ;  he  con- 
structed seven  large  cabinets  and  galleries  and  en- 
riched   them    with    nearly   fifteen    hundred    statues. 


434  EOME. 

We  now  approach  the  Belvedere  through  a  square 
vestibule. 

In  the  middle  of  it  is  the  Torso  of  the  Belvedere,  a 
colossal  fragment  of  Herculean  stature  in  Greek  mar- 
ble. In  the  time  of  Alexander  VI.,  when  it  was 
found  near  the  theatre  of  Porapey,  works  contempo- 
rary Avith  Pericles  were  rarer  than .  they  are  now. 
This  possesses  great  value ;  for  its  author,  ApoUonius, 
son  of  Nestor  of  Athens,  affixed  his  name  to  it,  and 
it  made  a  revolution  in  art ;  Michael  Angelo  studied 
it  to  such  a  degree,  that  he  was  wont  to  call  himself 
a  pupil  of  the  Torso.  In  the  round  vestibule  which 
comes  next,  is  a  fragment  of  a  statue  with  some  re- 
markable drapery,  carefully  analyzed  by  Raphael, 
and  a  fine  statue  of  a  seated  woman. 

The  next  cabinet,  containing  the  inscription  of  L. 
Mumraius,  the  conqueror  of  Corinth,  and  a  colossal 
bust  of  Trajan,  is  dedicated  to  Meleager,  the  ideal  of 
beauty  in  the  time  of  Canova.  This  celebrated  fig- 
ure, in  which  the  hero  rests  on  his  lance  between  his 
dog  and  the  head  of  the  Calydonian  boar,  unites  in 
a  rare  degree  the  qualities  of  elegance  and  distinction. 

We  noAv  reach  the  Octagonal  Court,  which  it  would 
be  more  correct  to  describe  as  square  Avith  portions 
cut  out.  Under  the  arches  are  placed  separately,  in 
a  series  of  cabinets,  so  as  to  be  seen  Avithout  any  dis- 
tractions, some  masterpieces  that  are  known  to  the 
Avhole  Avorld.  Here  is  the  great  sarcophagus  found 
at  tS.  Peter's,  in  digging  the   foundations  of  the  sac- 


THE  APOLLO  BELVEDERE.  435 

risty  ;  it  has  an  exquisite  design  of  a  Dance  of  Bac- 
chantes. Turning  to  the  right,  you  come  to  a  Sacel- 
hxni  dedicated  to  Canova,  in  the  persons  of  the  Perseus 
and  the  PugiHsts.  If  Canova  sometimes  gives  us  his 
inspiration  a  Httle  chilled,  Ave  cannot  deny  its  power. 
The  Perseus  reveals  rare  gifts ;  but  besides  that  the 
pose  recalls — though  less  accentuated — the  bronze  of 
Cellini  under  the  loggia  of  Orcagna  at  Florence  ;  al- 
though the  limbs  have  not  the  same  bounding  sup- 
pleness, they  are  free,  exquisite,  one  might  almost 
say,  tender. 

Before  the  great  marble  figure,  lustrous  as  an 
onyx,  of  the  Apollo  Belvedere,  unexpected  sensa- 
tions awaited  me.  As  it  appears  in  all  its  luminous- 
ness,  against  the  greenish  grey  walls  of  the  cabinet 
which  it  occupies  alone,  you  are  dazzled  at  the 
real  incarnation  of  the  god — Dens  ccce  Dens  !  And 
suddenly  an  idea  arises — the  copies  are  not  faith- 
ful ;  people  do  not  know  it.  Seized  in  a  moment  of 
happiest  inspiration,  the  pose  has  something  more 
determinate,  the  expression  of  the  face  is  a  more 
complete  justification  than  in  any  of  the  multiplied 
plaster  reproductions.  The  head  has  nothing  col- 
lected nor  cold  ;  it  agrees  in  every  muscle  with  the 
power  of  the  eye,  of  the  lips,  of  the  swelling  nostrils; 
the  glitter  of  the  polish  rendering  it  moist  and  quiver- 
ing. Whether  the  Apollo  Belvedere  is  a  Greek  mar- 
ble or  marble  of  Luna,  whether  it  has  been  copied 
from  a  bronze  or  not,  these  are  but  secondary  ques- 


436  HOME. 

tions  ;  the  criticisms  of  the  restorations  of  Montorsoli 
seem  to  me  mere  puerilities.  Found  near  the  sea  at 
Antium,  and  acquired  by  the  Cardinal  della  Rovere, 
who  first  of  all  placed  it  in  his  palace  adjoining  the 
SS.  Apostoli,  the  Apollo  with  which  Julius  II.  crowned 
the  Vatican  is  one  of  its  most  ancient  conquests.  It 
would  have  exercised  prompter  influence  on  art  but 
for  ]\Iichael  Angelo,  who,  under  the  charm  of  the 
Torso  and  some  other  fragments  (for  he  did  not  see 
the  Parthenon),  made  the  aberrations  of  the  second 
Grecian  epoch  prevail  over  those  of  the  third,  which 
though  less  widespread,  were  more  seductive  in 
Canova's  time. 

Three  Rhodian  sculptors,  Agesander,  Polydorus, 
and  Athenodorus,  have  left  a  no  less  renowned  work; 
occupying  a  separate  cabinet,  it  was  found  in  1506  in 
the  ruins  of  the  palace  of  Titus,  on  the  spot  where 
Pliny  had  described  it ;  this  is  the  Laocoon.  The 
effect  of  the  original  marble  is  so  superior  to  that  of 
the  copies  that  Ave  are  fain  to  believe  them  all  actual 
copies,  and  not  casts.  In  replacing  a  missing  arm, 
Giovan  Angelo  Montorsoli  extended  it,  although  from 
certain  marks  left  in  the  hair,  we  may  conclude  that 
it  was  originally  folded  convulsively  behind  the  head 
in  an  attitude  of  desperate  grief.  Others  attribute  this 
arm  to  Bacio  Bandinelli ;  it  would  be  difficult  for  me 
to  explain  without  being  diffuse  why  I  think  it  more 
modern.  Pliny,  who  supposed  the  group  to  be  cut 
in  a  single  block  (the  sutures  not  then  being  visible)? 


THE  BELVEDERE.  437 

describes  the  Laocoon  as  02}us  omnibus  stafurue  artis 
prcpponendum,  and  Michael  Angelo  called  it  a  miracle 
of  art. 

Around  the  five  chapels,  to  whose  patrons  we  have 
now  done  homage,  are  arranged  many  objects  which 
ought  to  be  examined  at  leisure,  such  as  the  bas-re- 
liefs and  sarcophagi,  in  Avhich  the  habits  of  life  and 
rites  of  prse- Christian  faiths  are  described.  Some 
historical  figures  diversify  the  curiosities  of  which  the 
court  is  the  centre  ;  I  remember  a  Yenus-mater,  with 
her  Bambino,  a  likeness  of  the  wife  of  Alexander 
Severus,  at  the  foot  of  which  is  written  that  ''  this 
statue  is  off*ered  to  their  ancient  mistress  by  her 
two  freedmen,  Sallustia  and  Elpidia." 

In  the  cabinet  of  Mercury,  a  bas-relief  of  an  Egyp- 
tian procession  struck  me  as  remarkable  for  simplicity 
and  ingenuous  grace.  Let  me  also  mention  the  panel 
of  an  ancient  tomb  on  which,  between  likenesses  and 
genii,  you  discover  through  a  half-open  door  the  in- 
terior perspective  of  a  temple  ;  and  the  bas-relief  of 
the  Sacrifice  to  Mithra,  on  the  cornice  of  which  we 
read,  Soli  invicto  dco  ;  and  the  Roman  lady  as  Bac- 
chante, lying  with  graceful  abandonment  on  the 
sepulchre  in  which  she  sleeps  so  profoundly  ;  and  the 
large  bas-relief  representing  a  Sacred  Procession, 
with  lictors,  and  likenesses  of  consids  and  pontifices ; 
and  the  Ossuary,  in  the  form  of  a  house,  which  held 
the  remains  of  Quintus  Vitellius ;  and  the  elegant 
sarcophagus  of  the  Nereids To  be  just  one 


438  KOME. 

ought  either  to  mention  everything  or  nothing ;  but 
when  the  memory  is  full,  that  is  not  easy. 

The  Hall  of  the  Animals  was  begun  by  Pius  VI., 
and  continued  by  his  successor.  The  collection  Avas 
cleverly  arranged  by  Francesco  Franzoni,  whose 
numerous  restorations  are  generally  supple  and  well 
conceived :  Franzoni  is  one  of  the  celebrities  of 
modern  sculpture,  but  his  name,  well  known  in  Rome, 
appears  in  none  of  our  biographies  miscalled  univer- 
sal, which  likewise  ignore  a  good  half  of  the  masters 
of  the  Florentine  school.  In  the  Attack  on  a  Young 
Stag  Ave  find  a  peculiar  species  of  hound,  whose  spring 
and  muscular  power  are  excellently  rendered,  and 
with  rare  beauty ;  the  type  is  less  flat-nosed  than 
ours  5  the  ears  are  cropped  as  we  crop  them  now. 
Near  by  is  the  Combat  between  a  Bear  and  a  Bull. 
The  two  Greyhounds,  of  which  one  playfully  bites 
the  ear  of  the  other,  are  the  Apollo  and  Venus  among 
greyhounds :  you  would  say  as  much  of  the  Hunting- 
Dogs,  of  the  Whelp  putting  out  its  paw,  of  the  Set- 
ter of  violet  breccia,  of  a  Bull  of  the  same  marble, 
of  the  Cows,  of  the  Running  Greyhound,  and  many 
other  works.  Horses  are  rare,  but  in  this  marble 
menagerie  an  important  place  is  given  to  grotesques 
and  to  animals  used  for  food ;  the  pleasures  of  the 
table  flourished  at  the  beginning  of  the  empire. 
There  are  ducks,  cocks  and  hens,  quails,  a  goose 
whose  pose  is  a  masterpiece  of  observation  ;  a  lobster 
in  green  Carrara  marble,  which  cheats  you  into  think- 


THE  HALL  OF  THE  ANIMALS.  439 

ing  it  real ;  Avater-fowl,  a  hare,  a  bustard ;  a  turkey, 
the  merits  of  which  can  only  be  fully  appreciated  by 
people  Avho  have  had  to  contend  with  this  capricious 
beauty  and  its  gobbling  anger.  Among  the  bur- 
lesques one  must  not  leave  out  a  toad  in  rosso  an- 
tico ;  nor  the  rats  and  crabs  of  green  porphyry,  nor 
the  scorpions ;  nor  the  lynx,  nor  some  curious  storks 
quaintly  represented.  In  the  Group  of  Mithras, 
where  a  bleeding  bull  has  his  blood  licked  up  by  a 
dog  stretching  to  reach  the  wound,  the  extent  to 
which  the  style  agrees  with  reality  is  surprising.  In 
designing  the  Rape  of  Europa,  the  artist  has  skilfidly 
made  the  divinity  of  Zeus  radiant  on  the  head  of  the 
bull.  Hercules  drags  away  the  Nemean  lion,  which 
is  dead  enough,  and  Avhose  slackened  limbs  possess  a 
surprising  reality.  I  shoidd  omit  the  Commodus  on 
horseback  in  hunting-dress,  if  it  had  not  inspired 
Bernini  with  his  equestrian  figure  of  Constantino 
under  the  portico  of  S.  Peter's :  this  landmark  Avill 
help  us  to  find  the  group  of  the  eagle  close  by,  with 
its  brood  of  eaglets,  huddled  together  like  the  vora- 
cious dynasty  of  the  pelican.  It  is  a  work  of  aston- 
ishing vigor.  The  panther  of  veined  alabaster,  with 
its  stripes  rendered  by  the  marble,  is  a  gem  ;  but  the 
recumbent  Tiger  in  Egyptian  granite,  coarsely 
modelled  in  that  stubborn  material,  is  still  more  re- 
markable. The  Lion  in  grey  marble,  larger  than 
Hfe,  with  a  calf's  head  between  its  claws,  is  curious 
in  point  of  execution ;  the  body,  of  superlative  polish, 


440  EOME. 

has  a  fleshy  solidity  that  is  exaggerated,  to  give  light- 
ness and  crispness  to  the  mane,  which  is  very  abim- 
dant,  and  is  stiU  left  shaggy  and  heavy.  There  are 
the  head  of  a  cow  and  the  head  of  an  ass  crowned 
Avith  ivy,  which  are  models  ;  the  second,  in  grey  mar- 
ble, seems  a  despository  of  the  soul  common  to  the 
whole  race  of  nags.  And  what  charming  groups ! 
The  small  Goat  bitten  by  an  asp,  the  Stork  defend- 
ing a  frightened  she-goat  and  kid  from  two  serpents; 
the  Sow  with  her  litter,  a  superb  group,  with  much 
character ;  the  Pelican  holding  her  young  in  her  open 
sides,  the  Chained  Cerberus  carried  away  by  Her- 
cules,  ....  one  ought  really  to  omit  nothing. 

One  word  more  for  a  rural  scene  represented  in  a 
curious  bas-relief;  its  subject  is  a  Lustration,  a  re- 
ligious practice  which  the  Etruscans  perhaps  taught 
the  Romans,  and  which  is  not  without  an  analogy 
with  certain  Semitic  rites.  Our  bas-relief  shows  the 
lustration  of  a  heifer,  who  suckles  her  calf;  an  antique 
work,  as  perfect  as  it  is  rare.  We  recognize  the  tem- 
ple and  its  enclosure,  the  sacred  fountain  under  a  tree, 
the  lustral  bowl  and  the  brush,  an  olive  branch ;  the 
shepherd  carries  strung  on  his  crook  two  geese,  which 
he  is  about  to  sacrilice.  While  all  is  thus  being  pre- 
pared, the  cow,  as  she  lets  her  young  one  suck,  dips 
her  muzzle  into  the  cup  and  drinks  the  consecrated 
water. 

Two  personages  seated  at  the  end  of  the  Pio- 
Clementine   gallery   attracted   me   so   much   that,  in 


THE  PIO-CLEMENTINE  MUSEUM.  441 

order  to  rejoin  them  the  more  rapidly ,  I  neglected 
any  number  of  other  wonders  on  the  way.  The  one 
to  the  right  is  Posidippus,  and  the  other  Menander. 
The  statue  of  Posidippus,  simply  wrought,  in  har- 
mony with  the  familiar  ease  of  the  attitude,  is  clad  in 
a  tunic,  Avith  the  pallium  thrown  over  the  left  shoul- 
der. The  poet,  a  true  academic  head,  wrinkled  with 
age,  but  subtle  and  pensive,  holds  a  roll  between  his 
fingers,  which  have  rings  on  them.  Menander  is 
robust  and  younger ;  Ave  know,  in  fact,  that  he  scarcely 
lived  beyond  fifty.  It  Avas  by  his  resemblance  to  the 
likeness  in  the  famous  bas-relief  of  the  Farnesina, 
that  Quirinio  Visconti  recognized  this  prince  of  Greek 
comic  authors,  Avho  most  likely  lived  before  Posidip- 
pus.  The  attitude  has  more  life  ;  the  poet  in  repose, 
with  his  left  arm  resting  on  the  rounded  back  of  his 
seat,  his  head  inclined  as  if  to  study  Avhat  is  passing 
before  him,  has  the  conformation  of  a  man  of  alert- 
ness, AA'ith  the  caustic  expression  of  an  observer 
wearied  by  the  scenes  of  the  Avorld. 

Turning  back  after  thus  saluting  the  master  of 
Plautus,  Ave  come  upon  an  Apollo  Citharsedus,  in 
whom  connoisseurs  claim  to  recognize  Nero — a  more 
than  doubtful  assertion.  Then  folloAv  the  Wounded 
Adonis,  as  beautiful  and  as  stupid  as  he  ought  to  be ; 
the  Bacchus  lying  down,  much  renoAvned,  because  in 
the  process  of  becoming  defaced,  it  has  gotten  a  false 
air  of  the  grand  epoch  ;  the  Opelius  Macrinus,  unique 
statue  of  an  emperor  AA'hose  medals  are  rare,  and  in- 


442  EOME. 

teresting  as  representing  the  art  of  the  third  century, 
when  the  science  of  interpretation  was  yielding  to 
the  mechanical  imitation  of  nature.  From  that  point 
of  view,  it  is  a  poAverful  figure  ;  and  brings  out  all 
the  better  the  brutal  form  and  foul  shape  of  the  Nu- 
midian  upstart,  said  to  have  sprung  from  slavery,  to 
have  been  reared  in  domestic  service,  to  have  risen 
by  assassination,  and  who  died  like  a  coward.  Treas- 
ures are  buried  everywhere  in  Rome  :  the  enormous 
Bath  of  oriental  alabaster  was  found  in  the  middle  of 
the  Piazza  SS.  Apostoli,  in  repairing  a  water-conduit. 
Nearly  opposite,  beside  ^sculapius,  is  Hygeia,  the 
goddess  of  health  ;  a  friend  Avhom  you  find  passing 
fair  the  moment  she  leaves  you ;  the  sculptor  had 
lost  her  perhaps,  for  he  has  made  her  adorable.  This 
figure,  which  must  belong  to  about  the  same  time  as 
the  Danaid  of  Prseneste,  is  far  from  equalling  the 
Faun  leaning  on  the  trunk  of  a  tree,  which  was  dis- 
covered in  the  Marsh  of  Ancona,  and  is  a  copy  from 
Praxiteles :  the  original,  mutilated  and  reduced  to  a 
torso,  was  found  in  the  excavations  on  the  Palatine. 
Finally,  under  an  arch  between  columns  of  giallo  an- 
tico  flanked  by  candelabra  of  marble  with  figures 
worth  describing,  is  lying  that  celebrated  figure  of 
Ariadne  deserted,  which  an  ophidian  bracelet  caused 
people  to  take  for  Cleopatra,  when  Julius  II.  had  this 
masterpiece  placed  in  the  Belvedere.  The  tunic  half 
undone,  the  sorrowful  features,  the  veil  falling  from 
the  head,  the  tumbled  folds  of  the  drapery — all  indi- 


THE  HALL  OF  BUSTS.  443 

cate  the  prostration  which  follows  violent  anguish.  A 
sarcophagus  of  struggling  Giants  whom  Ave  see  chang- 
ing into  hydras — the  pedestal  of  this  noble  work — is 
of  an  inferior  and  later  school. 

The  identity  of  the  Ariadne  is  confirmed  by  a 
neighboring  bas-relief,  not  less  important  as  a  piece 
of  evidence  than  as  a  work  of  art,  in  it  we  see  the 
same  figure  inversely  arranged,  between  Theseus 
who  climbs  the  side  of  his  ship,  and  a  Faun  who  pre- 
cedes Bacchus  :  a  goat  in  it  symbolizes  Naxos,  an 
islet  of  the  rocky  herd  in  the  ^gean.  Nothwith- 
standing  several  restorations  which  date  for  the  most 
part  from  the  fifteenth  century,  this  bas-relief,  ex- 
humed under  the  auspices  of  Cardinal  d'Este,  at  Ha- 
drian's Villa,  is  one  of  the  most  interesting  sculptures 
in  the  museum. 

At  the  entrance  to  the  Hall  of  Busts  is  Julius 
Csesar,  draped  in  a  toga ;  a  poor  head  and  of  doubt- 
ful authenticity  ;  then  we  pass  an  Augustus  crowned 
with  Avheat-ears,  and  a  pseudo-Cicero  Avhich  can  no 
longer  impose  on  us.  There  is  Marcus  Aurelius,  and 
Mamsea,  wdth  her  son  Alexander  Severus ;  farther 
on,  a  veiled  matron,  whose  robes  are  curiously  draped. 
The  helmeted  head  of  Menelaus  is  so  well  known, 
that  it  has  taken  its  place  among  real  personages. 
You  think  you  recognize  Ptolemy,  king  of  Maurita- 
nia, by  his  crisp  hair  and  energetically  indicated 
signs  of  race.  Does  it  not  seem  as  if  this  stupid 
hysena  who  is  Caracalla  is  going  to  scream,  as  you  re- 


444  KOME. 

ceive  the  sombre  flash  from  his  eyes,  and  detect  the 
expression  of  the  skilfully  executed  mouth  ?  A  fine 
head  of  an  assassin  and  a  restless  tyrant ;  he  carried 
it  slightly  bent,  to  imitate  Alexander  of  Macedon, 
and  gained  by  this  piece  of  folly  the  look  of  an  angry 
cat.  Augustus  reappears,  so  aged,  with  a  mouth  at 
once  so  scornful  and  so  dejected ;  the  majesty  of  the 
old  mechanism  expires  in  such  exhaustion  of  disen- 
chantment, that  it  seems  like  the  summing  up  of  life's 
experience  in  an  absolute  contempt  for  men.  This 
likeness  is  larger  than  nature,  as  well  as  those  of  An- 
tonius,  of  Septimius  Severus,  of  Otho,  a  bust  draped 
in  that  orange-colored  oriental  alabaster  Avhich  the 
Italians  call  cotognino,  and  finally,  of  Nero  Avith  the 
harp — a  virtuoso  with  weak  blinking  eyes,  repre- 
sented so  as  to  confirm  the  confidential  testimony  of 
Pliny  as  to  the  cat-like  glance  of  this  emperor. 

After  saluting  the  cold  effigy  of  Jupiter,  we  pass 
the  colossal  head  of  a  Barbarian  King,  said  to  come 
from  the  arch  of  Constantine.  A  work  of  the  de- 
cadence, this  poor  chance  king  produces  here  the 
effect  of  a  sheep-dog  among  the  pure  greyhounds  of 
the  pack.  Commodus  figures  among  the  best  like- 
nesses, as  well  as  Sabina  with  her  husband  Hadrian, 
close  to  a  fine  Aristophanes  who  comes  from  their 
villa.  Near  a  draped  bust  of  oriental  alabaster,  which 
is  assuredly  not  a  Julius  Csesar,  you  will  remark  the 
energetic  and  common  head  of  a  Plebeian,  which  was 
found  near  the  tomb  of  the  kScipios,  and  which  some- 


THE  HALL  OF  BUSTS.  445 

what  recalls  Cardinal  Antonelli :  then,  Livia  Drusilla, 
fourth  wife  of  Augustus ;  Philip  the  Younger,  in  red 
porphyry  ;  a  Seipio  Africanus  cojupletely  apocry- 
phal ;  Saloninus  son  of  Gallienus,  and  Julia  daughter 
of  Titus.  These  galleries  are  so  rich  in  likenesses, 
that  they  possess  images  of  royal  children  hardly 
mentioned  in  history,  such  as  Annius  Verus,  a  son  of 
Marcus  Aurelius,  who  was  proclaimed  Caesar  at  the 
age  of  three,  and  who  died  three  years  afterwards. 
AA^hen  you  have  visited  the  Capitol  and  the  Vatican, 
you  know  the  great  people  of  the  Roman  empire 
more  intimately  than  our  own  kings  and  heroes  ante- 
rior to  Lewis  XIV. 


446  KOME. 


CHAPTER    XXV. 

By  going  tlirougli  the  great  Italian  gardens  of  the 
fifteenth  and  sixteenth  centuries  we  get  an  idea  of 
those  paradises  planned  by  the  proconsuls,  and  re- 
discovered by  the  ascetics  of  a  later  age  in  their  mystic 
dreams.  The  Eden  of  the  successors  of  S.  Peter  and 
Julius  11.  is  a  poetic  solitude.  On  three  sides  the  view 
extends  over  distant  country,  while  the  foreground 
composed  of  marbles  and  clipped  foliage  presents  a 
series  of  happy  contrasts  with  the  thickets,  the  bram- 
bles, the  russet  hills,  the  violet  undulations,  and  some- 
times with  the  snows  that  lie  beyond.  The  valley  is 
divided  into  compartments,  bounded  by  terraces, 
squares  planted  in  stiff"  figures,  and  framed  by  walls 
or  orange-trees  cut  into  hedges,  whose  golden  fruits 
and  perfumed  alabaster  blossoms  gleam  among  the 
foliage.  Shut  in  by  partitions  of  box  and  laurel, 
high  as  groves  of  oak,  the  avenues  cross  and  recross 
one  another,  half-veiled  by  shades  which  recall  the 
night  and  suggest  the  idea  of  mystery.  Here  and 
there  antique  tombs  arouse  vague  dreams,  and  statues 
suddenly  confronting  you  from  some  leafy  thicket 
cause  a  start  of  surprise. 

Advancing  thus,  amazed,  delighted,  uncertain  which 


THE  GALLERY  OF  MAPS.  447 

direction  to  take,  as  at  each  turn  some  fresh  beauty 
beckons  you  away,  you  come  at  last  to  the  Casino,  a 
miniature  villa  constructed  by  that  lucky  namesake 
of  the  Medici,  who  owed  their  patronage  to  his  name, 
and  Avho,  to  justify  so  ambitious  a  relationship,  insti- 
tuted seminaries,  founded  the  Vatican  school  of  paint- 
ing, and  directed  Pirro  Ligorio,  his  architect,  accord- 
ing to  the  traditions  of  the  reigns  of  Leo  X.  and 
Clement  VII.  This  building,  the  most  irregular  of 
works  in  point  of  taste  and  style,  gives  a  happy  idea 
of  the  caprices  and  jovial  humor  of  Pius  IV.  In 
truth,  never  have  the  architectural  debauches  con- 
ceived by  our  painters,  of  gay  scenes  of  merry-mak- 
ing, exceeded  the  amusing  simplicity  of  this  chinois- 
erie,  which  was  inspired  by  Giovanni  da  Udine. 
Terraces,  open  galleries,  cabinets  of  painting,  mar- 
bles and  rock-work,  bas-reliefs  and  festoons  of  ver- 
dure, baths  and  boudoirs,  basins  and  fountains,  are 
all  mixed  in  premeditated  confusion ;  unforeseen 
effects  follow  one  another  at  every  step ;  the  mosaics, 
and  the  quaint  delicacies  of  the  statuary  are  further 
enlivened  by  the  pencil  of  Baroccio,  Zucchari,  and 
Santi  di  Tito. 

I  proceeded  to  the  very  end  of  the  Gallery  of  Maps, 
the  last  hall  on  the  second  story.  Between  the  thirty 
windows  which  light  it  on  either  side,  Gregory  XIII., 
the  reformer  of  the  calendar,  had  painted  in  colors 
enormous  maps  of  the  provinces  of  Italy.  By  his 
order,  the  gallery  was  furnished  with  marble  benches 


448  ROME. 

and  a  double  row  of  Hermes,  antique  busts  resting 
on  high  pedestals.  Simply  paved,  this  chamber  has 
for  ceiling  a  many-colored  paradise  of  medallions,  of 
coffer-work,  or  trophies  of  stucco,  framing  paintings, 
where  projecting  pediments  are  peopled  Avith  statu- 
ettes flitting  under  the  arches,  and  representing  Loves 
or  Angels,  according  to  the  disposition  of  the  specta- 
tor. I  traversed  rapidly  the  Gallery  of  Maps,  as  well 
as  that  of  Tapestries.  You  are  astonished  to  find 
even  under  the  roofs,  above  the  Chiaramonti  museum, 
new  corridors  as  high  and  as  rich  in  columns,  arch- 
ways, precious  marbles,  and  splendidly  decorated 
vaults.  Paved  with  polished  marble,  in  which  the 
pedestals  of  four  porphyry  columns  are  reflected,  the 
Galeria  degli  Arazzi  is  of  more  sober  ornamentation  ; 
it  was  only  finished  under  Pius  VIII. :  all  interest  is 
centred  in  the  famous  tapestries  which  Leo  X.  had 
executed  for  the  Sixtine  chapel,  from  designs  fur- 
nished by  Raphael.  They  are  fourteen  in  number,  but 
only  eleven  are  attributed  to  the  master  himself,  the 
same  number  as  the  cartoons.  I  had  seen  the  seven 
'Avhich  are  at  the  S.  Kensington  Museum.  The  Tapes- 
tries are  more  finished  and  of  richer  coloring ;  they 
do  honor  to  the  Flemish  workmen,  for  they  are  ex- 
ecuted without  heaviness,  from  simple  hints ;  but 
then  in  these  hints  Avhat  freedom,  what  brightness ! 
Below  the  principal  subjects,  which  are  scenes  taken 
from  the  Gospels,  are  arranged  between  the  borders, 
almost  as  a  sort  of  predella,  other  subjects,  borrowed 


THE  GALLERY  OF  THE  CANDELABRA.    449 

from  the  history  of  the  Medici : — the  Return  to  Flor- 
ence of  the  cardinal  of  that  name ;  Giovanni  de' 
Medici  being  taken  prisoner  at  the  battle  of  Ravenna; 
Giovanni  (afterwards  Leo  X.)  fleeing  from  Florence 
in  the  dress  of  a  capuchin,  and  his  Entry  into  Rome 
to  attend  the  conclave.  Among  the  tapestries,  the 
designs  of  Avhich  are  not  attributed  to  Raphael,  let  us 
remark,  the  Allegory  of  the  Papacy,  the  Massacre  of 
the  Innocents,  and  Jesus  appearing  to  Mary  Magda- 
lene. With  these  hangings  are  hung  others  of  the 
same  period,  but  not  by  Raphael,  which  although  they 
have  been  copied  more  than  once,  are  still  uncommon. 
As  Ave  have  a  long  way  to  go,  I  can  only  mention 
in  passing  the  most  remarkable  pieces,  in  the  Gallery 
of  the  Candelabra,  such  as  the  Great  Bowl  on  which 
Silenus  and  the  Fauns  make  the  vintage, — a  work  of 
fine  style ;  the  wounded  Phrygian  Soldier,  belong- 
ing to  a  later  age,  but  of  extreme  vigor ;  the  small 
Vase  of  brown  Egyptian  granite ;  the  Ceres  with 
fine  draperies  in  Parian  marble ;  the  Bowl  on  which 
horses  and  dolphins  carry  Neptune ;  the  Cup  of  red 
oriental  granite  streaked  like  Spanish  beans  ;  and  that 
other  one  that  has  such  pretty  handles,  composed  of 
adders  twisted  into  masks  (it  is  of  superfine  porphyry, 
dark  green  on  a  lighter  shade).  These  gems  are  dis- 
played on  altars  of  marble  and  jasper,  covered  with 
inscriptions.  On  another  vase,  in  the  shape  of  a 
mortar,  ai'e  sketched  emblems  mixed  with  animals; 
you  would  not  believe  the  extent  to  which,  among  so 

29 


450  ROME. 

many  objects  of  classic  execution,  the  different  pro- 
cesses are  represented.  The  statue  of  a  Victorious 
Virgin  (222)  reveals  a  fashion  which  seeks  to  imitate 
the  Etruscan,  just  as  we  make  pasticci  of  the  style 
of  our  own  middle  ages.  The  Mortar  (210),  round 
which  Bacchantes  dance  in  a  ring,  as  well  as  its 
cylindrical  base,  on  which  cities  and  provinces  figure, 
is  a  model  of  grace  and  lightness.  If  Ave  allow  our- 
selves to  be  too  much  fascinated  by  the  splendor  of 
certain  gems,  such  as  a  Vase  in  semi-transparent 
alabaster,  streaked  with  concentric  zones,  and  two 
other  Vases  of  rose-colored  alabaster,  veined  with  the 
tenderest  shades,  we  run  the  risk  of  overlooking  the 
splendid  Sarcophagus  which  serves  as  a  support  for 
them,  the  bas-reliefs  of  which  are  very  remarkable. 
They  represent  Apollo  and  Diana  exterminating  Avith 
arrows  the  too  fair  family  of  Niobe.  This  massacre 
represented  with  much  animation,  between  the  im- 
passive figures  of  the  gods  shooting  their  arrows, 
unites  to  the  nobleness  of  Greek  art  the  science  of 
composition  and  a  knowledge  of  dramatic  emotion : 
despair,  the  agony  of  death,  the  supplication  of  ter- 
ror,— all  is  expressed  with  spirit.  On  the  lid  is  an 
original  frieze,  composed  of  a  group  of  dead  bodies. 
Not  far  off  a  niche  shelters  a  singular  statue  ;  Jupiter 
dressed  as  a  Avoman,  with  the  attributes  of  Diana  the 
huntress.  He  is  disguised  thus  to  cheat  Calisto,  one 
of  the  nymphs  of  the  goddess.  Three  children,  one 
of  which  beats  a  sAvan  that  another  is  dragging  by 


THE  HALL  OF  THE  CANDELABRA.     451 

the  wing  and  the  neck,  whilst  the  third  carries  off 
fruit  in  a  nebris,  seem  to  rae  small  masterpieces  ;  they 
form  part  of  a  group  which  once  decorated  a  fountain 
at  Roma  Vecchia,  between  the  Latin  Way  and  the 
Appian  Way.  Near  the  great  Candelabrum  repre- 
senting Hercides  and  Apollo  disputing  for  the  tripod 
of  Delphi,  there  are  three  vases  which,  besides  their  ele- 
gance, are  curious  specimens  of  rare  and  precious  mar- 
ble. One  of  an  amazing  size  is  of  Orta  alabaster, 
broadly  veined  with  interior  lines  5  the  second,  abso- 
lutely unique,  is  of  jasper  radicellato,  with  a  purple 
ground  streaked  with  grey  rays,  bluish  and  white  ;  the 
third,  in  black  African  antique,  has  for  handles  two 
rooks,  which,  with  tails  fixed  in  the  body  of  the  vase, 
bend  back  to  sharpen  their  beaks  on  the  brim  of  the 
bowl. 

The  Ariadne  discovered  by  Bacchus  is  one  of  the 
four  principal  sarcophagi  of  the  Vatican.  Like  its 
neighbor,  the  sarcophagus  of  Niobe,  it  is  easily  iden- 
tified from  a  distance  by  pillars  surmounted  by  vases  ; 
one  of  these  is  of  fluted  violet  marble,  the  other  is 
pahmbino.  As  far  as  the  composition  is  concerned, 
the  Ariadne  is  a  masterpiece  of  bas-reliefs ;  the  scene 
is  full  but  free  from  confusion,  and  the  interest  con- 
centrates on  the  principal  subject.  The  attitude  of 
Ariadne  is  exactly  that  of  the  great  Ariadne  of  the 
Gallery  of  Statues,  which  was  mistaken  for  Cleopatra. 
La  the  Satyr  there  is  a  hint,  in  the  head  only,  of  the 
Moses  of  Michael  Angelo,  who  never  saw  this  bas- 


452  EOME. 

relief.  The  last  figure  to  the  left,  a  woman  and  the 
small  Bacchanals  of  the  frieze  or  lid,  with  a  cartouche 
supported  by  Loves,  are  exquisite  pieces  of  sculpture. 
Examples  of  the  art  of  making  bas-reliefs  effective, 
and  at  the  same  time  free  from  weakness  or  harsh- 
ness, there  are  in  these  two  masterpieces,  the  Ariadne 
and  the  Niobe,  materials  for  a  school.  I  saw  again 
with  pleasure  the  fine  statue  of  a  Roman  lady  as 
Polyhymnia ;  it  is  thus,  though  Avitli  a  less  noble 
severity,  that  they  used  to  transform  our  fine  ladies 
of  the  ancient  regime  into  Muses. 

Leaving  the  Hall  of  the  Candelabra,  and  passing 
Simonetti's  magnificent  staircase,  we  now  enter  the 
circular  hall  of  the  Biga,  so  called  from  the  chariot 
placed  in  the  centre  by  Pius  VI.,  Avhich  long  served 
in  the  church  of  S.  Mark  for  a  cathedra.  Entrusted 
with  the  restoration  of  this  Greek  car,  the  pole  of 
which  ending  in  a  ram's  head  had  been  preserved, 
Franzoni  fitted  somewhat  heavy  wheels  to  it,  made  a 
new  head  for  the  fine  galloping  courser,  Avhich  Prince 
Borghese  had  presented  to  the  holy  father,  created  a 
second  horse,  and  the  thing  was  done.  To  plant  a 
head  in  the  antique  style  on  an  admirable  equestrian 
torso  is  no  mean  achievement,  and  this  restoration  is 
a  masterpiece  of  its  kind ;  the  ornamentation  of  the 
car,  composed  of  foliage  twisting  in  and  out  among 
rosettes,  and  mingled  Avith  Avheat-ears,  is  of  inimitable 
workmanship.  The  Avhole  seemed  so  wonderful  to 
Pius  VI.  that,  to  install  the  Biga  suitably,  he  had  this 


THE  HALL  OF  THE  BIGA.  453 

rotunda  constructed  by  Camporese,  with  a  cupola 
imitated  from  the  Pantheon,  resting  on  a  marble  cor- 
nice, supported  by  eight  fluted  columns  with  Corin- 
thian capitals.  Besides  the  famous  chariot,  this  hall 
contains  other  objects  of  value  :  an  Indian  Bacchus 
of  the  second  century,  a  bearded  figure  Avith  long 
plaited  hair,  clad  in  a  sleeved  tunic,  with  sandals ; — 
the  small  sarcophagi  with  circus-races  drawn  on  them : 
interesting  pieces,  for  the  one  comes  from  the  cata- 
comb of  S.  Sebastian,  while  the  other,  which  Avas 
found  in  the  same  A'ineyard  as  the  tomb  of  the  Scipios, 
is  of  rare  delicacy.  Let  us  also  remark  the  Apollo 
Citharasdus,  and  the  Discobolos  of  Pentelican  marble, 
found  on  the  Appian  Way,  a  celebrated  statue,  so 
correct  as  to  liaA^e  acquired  a  didactic  A^alue.  Still, 
notwithstanding  its  irreproachable  proportions,  hoAV 
inferior  it  seems  to  the  reproduction  of  the  Discobolos 
of  Myron,  placed  close  by  !  That  admirably  posed 
figure  of  a  young  athlete  hurling  the  discus  shows  a 
physique  at  once  full  of  spring  and  strength ;  the  arms 
and  chest  modelled  broadly  and  Avith  a  simplicity,  the 
secret  of  Avhich  Avas  too  soon  forgotten,  recall  the  great 
epoch  symbolized  by  the  name  of  Phidias.  The  artist 
who  drew  his  inspiration  from  the  bronze  of  Myron, 
has  written  on  the  base,  at  the  foot  of  Avhich  is  a 
strigil :  MTP^N  EllOIEI.  The  huntress  Diana,  Avith 
a  qiiiA'cr  on  her  shoulder  and  a  dog  by  her  side,  has 
a  face  Avhich  reminds  us  of  the  gallant  figures  of  the 
youth  of  Louis  XIV.)  but  A\diat  a  model  of  grace  and 


464  EOME. 

execution !  What  coiilcl  be  more  interesting  than 
the  victorious  chariot-driver  who  holds  in  one  hand 
the  pahn  and  in  the  other  the  reins  ?  He  has  a  hook 
for  a  weapon  ;  and  his  body  seems  to  be  encircled  by 
iron  bands  placed  over  the  tunic.  In  order  to  reach 
the  Circular  Hall  we  must  again  pass  through  the 
Hall  of  the  Greek  Cross,  this  latter  indeed  serves  so 
constantly  for  a  passageway  either  to  reach  the  gar- 
dens or  to  ascend  to  the  Etruscan  and  Egyptian 
Museum,  or  to  descend  to  the  library,  that  there  is 
risk  of  neglecting  certain  objects  there.  The  veiled 
statue  of  Augustus  as  Pontifex  Maximus ;  the  half- 
draped  Octavius,  whose  head  curiously  enough  has 
never  been  detached  from  the  trunk ; — the  Lucius 
Verus,  so  well  posed,  though  the  head  is  a  little  too 
strong ; — an  esteemed,  though  in  my  opinion  weak, 
copy  of  the  Venus  of  Gnidus  ; — the  Sphinxes  in 
Egyptian  granite  on  each  side  of  the  staircase  5 — the 
colossal  heads  of  Trajan  and  IMarcus  Aurelius  ; — the 
Marciana ; — the  unknown  Empress  draped  as  Ceres 
or  Modesty,  to  whom  the  sculptor  has  given  the  eyes 
of  a  vampire ; — these  are  some  of  the  more  notable 
pieces.  There  are  two  others  Avhich,  reduced  to  their 
money  value  and  to  the  industrial  merits  of  the  Avork, 
so  attract  the  attention  that  they  help  to  prevent  one 
from  seeing  the  rest ;  these  are  two  gigantic  sar- 
cophagi, of  that  red  porphyry  which  is  so  hard  to  cut ; 
monoliths,  whose  mass  is  truly  imposing,  and  Avhich 
stand  in  the  upper  part  of  this  great  vestibule.      Of 


THE  CIECULAR  HALL.  455 

these  colossal  gems,  one,  taken  from  the  tomb  close 
by  S.  Agnes  beyond  the  walls,  held  the  remains  of 
the  daughter  of  Constantine ;  Genii,  Vintagers,  figures 
that  the  Romans  take  for  grotesques,  so  incorrect  is 
the  execution,  stand  out  in  extreme  relief  from  this 
crimson  block,  polished  like  a  cornelian.  Pius  VI. 
brought  these  renowned  sarcophagi  to  the  Vatican  j 
splendid  as  decorations,  they  are  still  more  precious  as 
historical  documents.  The  second  one  also  of  porphyry, 
is  larger  even  than  the  other,  and  is  furnished  with  a 
sculptured  pyramidal  lid.  S.  Helena  slept  easily  at 
Tor  Pignattara,  in  this  Titan's  toy,  transferred  after- 
wards to  S.  John  Lateran,  and  from  thence  brought 
here.  On  its  sides  run  and  gallop  the  soldiers  in  the 
Battle  against  Maxentius.  These  bas-reliefs,  which 
project  so  much  that  they  are  around  engaged  em- 
bossings, extend  their  triumphant  defiles  over  the 
four  faces.  But  their  success  is  merely  one  of  exe- 
cution, for  the  art  of  bas-reliefs  had  been  lost  when 
they  were  made. 

The  Circular  Hall  is  a  splendid  and  striking  resto- 
ration of  an  antique  salon.  You  Avoidd  suppose  your- 
self to  be  in  the  galleries  of  Maecenas,  of  Verres,  of 
Cicero,  or  of  Titus,  and  the  cause  of  this  illusion  is 
not  far  to  seek.  That  great  and  venerable  friend  of 
the  arts  whom  we  call  Pius  VI.  proceeded  in  the  same 
manner  as  the  contemporaries  of  Augustus ;  he  had 
the  casket  designed  for  gems  already  collected,  in- 
stead of  building  a  case  like  us,  without  thinking  be- 


456  ROME. 

forehand  of  the  contents.  The  pontiff  Braschi  pos- 
sessed eight  line  colossal  figures,  ten  busts,  an 
enormous  vase  of  red  porphyry,  and  the  mosaic  pave- 
ment of  an  ancient  rotunda.  So  he  placed  a  cupola 
upon  ten  fluted  pilasters  of  Carrara  marble,  between 
each  of  Avhich  an  arched  niche  was  left  for  the  great 
statues  on  their  pedestals  of  Greek  marble ;  before 
the  pilasters  were  placed  the  busts  on  red  porphyry 
brackets  ;  the  mosaic  of  Otricoli,  where  Medusa  is 
encircled  by  the  Combat  and  the  Lapithaj  and  Cen- 
taurs, and  Avhere  Tritons  move  with  Nymphs  and 
Chimseras,  was  again  made  the  pavement  of  an  an- 
tique hall ;  finally,  the  basin  of  red  porphyry,  forty- 
one  feet  in  circumference,  found  in  the  Thernne  of 
Diocletian,  was  installed  in  the  middle.  In  this  rich 
arrangement  all  contributes  to  a  certain  harmony,  all 
is  homogeneous  and  seems  to  belong  to  one  and  the 
same  age. 

Since  we  are  thus  carried  back  to  the  old  world,  it 
is  proper  first  of  all  to  bow  before  Jupiter  Optimus 
Maximus, — Maximus  particularly,  for  an  unspeakable 
majesty  characterizes  this  prototype  of  the  Olympian 
head.  The  projecting-  brows  of  a  monumental  fore- 
head, the  pitiless  impassibility  of  this  ideal  and  virile 
beauty  ;  the  parted  lips,  superior  to  every  emotion, 
and  through  which  only  oracles  can  pass  :  all  con- 
tribute to  convey  the  idea  of  a  superhuman  being,  all 
powerful,  with  no  vindictiveness  and  no  pity,  and  in 
whose  eye  mortals  are  but  as  insects.     Near  the  mas- 


THE  CIRCULAR  HALL.  457 

ter  of  the  gods  is  a  colossal  Bacchus,  the  torso  of 
which  recalls  by  its  modelling  the  fine  bronze  Her- 
cules found  in  the  Righetti  palace.  In  this  hall  gods 
and  emperors  are  assembled,  as  they  were  in  the  ideal 
Olympus  of  the  Romans.  Near  the  drunken  Bacchus 
leaning  on  a  faun,  a  charming  head,  is  the  great 
Ligurian  head  of  Pertinax,  broadly  sketched  and  full 
of  a  crafty  geniality ;  near  these  are  Plautinus  and 
Julia  Pia,  second  wife  of  Septimius  Severus,  separated 
from  a  colossal  bust  of  Claudius  (his  finest  known 
likeness)  by  the  great  Juno  of  Lanuvium,  surrounded 
by  curious  attributes.  She  is  less  handsome,  how- 
ever, than  the  famous  Barberini  Jituo,  placed  near 
Jupiter  Serapis,  in  which  the  King  of  Olympus, 
personified  according  to  doctrines  of  the  Alexan- 
drian school,  appears  with  the  tresses  of  Pluto  and  in 
the  centre  of  the  rays  of  Phoebus.  The  Juno's  head 
is  superb,  her  draperies  are  elegant  and  supple,  the 
hair  is  skilfully  dealt  Avith,  and  the  bosom  revealed 
with  grace  under  the  transparency  of  the  peplum  ;  it 
was  discovered  on  the  Yiminal,  and  is  a  Avork  of 
marked  style.  The  enormous  and  bizarre  Hermes 
of  Parian  marble,  which  represents,  not  the  Ocean, 
as  is  said,  but  a  grotesque  Triton  in  a  pool  in  the  gar- 
den of  Pozzoli,  separates  Antoninus  from  Nerva,  two 
fine  statues,  especially  the  first,  which  is  clad  in  a 
cuirass  and  holds  the  parazonium  in  the  left  hand ; 
Marcus  Aurelius  set  it  up  in  Hadrian's  villa.  A 
singular  fact  is  connected  with  the  seated  figure  of 


458  EOME. 

Nerva :  they  found  the  upper  lialf  between  the  ba- 
silicas of  Santa  Croce  and  the  Lateran  and  gave  it 
to  the  sculptor  Cavaceppi  to  restore,  whereupon  he 
discovered  that  he  had  the  lower  half,  which  had  been 
dug  up  at  some  indefinite  period,  in  his  own  posses- 
sion. On  the  pedestal  is  a  comic  bas-relief,  witty  and 
graceful,  representing  a  household  scene  taken  from 
the  first  book  of  the  Iliad,  Vidcan  indoctrinating 
Juno  so  as  to  make  her  less  intractable  with  Jupiter. 

Comedy  and  Tragedy  are  represented  by  two 
Hermes,  curious  specimens  of  Greek  art  in  the  time 
of  Hadrian,  who  had  them  carved  as  supports  for  the 
door  of  his  antique  theatre  at  Tivoli.  Comedy,  Avith 
a  chaplet  of  vine-leaves,  is  full  of  laughter  ;  the  head 
of  Tragedy  might  be  called  bourgeois  :  these  beauties 
seem  modern ;  the  old  heroic  world  was  vanishing. 
If  Ceres,  another  colossus,  affects  so  rigid  a  mien,  it 
is  because  she  is  without  doubt  indignant  that  they 
should  have  placed  a  fairly  reputable  goddess  between 
Antinoiis  and  Hadrian.  As  for  the  colossal  Hadrian 
exhumed  from  the  fosses  of  S.  Angelo,  this  head  in 
Pentelican  marble,  of  which  the  execution  is  trans- 
cendent, must  have  belonged  to  a  statue  posted  as 
guardian  in  the  vestibule  of  the  tomb. 

We  have  now,  after  more  than  one  omission  per- 
haps, to  make  our  obeisance  at  the  feet  of  Mnemosyne, 
described  /xNHOmCINH  in  the  inscription  in  old 
Greek  letters  on  her  statue,  which  is  only  about  half 
life  size  :   Clement  XIV.  purchased  this  masterpiece 


THE  HALL  OF  THE  MUSES.  459 

from  the  Barberinl.  Her  arms  are  concealed  beneath 
the  draperies,  Mnemosyne  Avrapped  within  herself 
seems,  so  vague  is  her  glance,  to  be  watching  some 
inner  horizons  :  it  is  thought  that  gives  life  to  this  in- 
active figure. 

The  sanctuary  of  the  Nine  Sisters,  presided  over 
by  Apollo  Musagetes,  clad  in  a  long  tunic  and  playing 
the  flute,  is  enriched  by  spoils  from  the  villa  of 
Tivoli  and  the  palaces  of  the  Esquiline,  to  which  are 
added  sixteen  columns  of  Carrara  marble.  The 
softened  light  in  this  octagonal  chamber  helps  to 
make  the  circle  of  the  Muses  more  imposing  ;  and  is 
additionally  valuable  as  it  phmges  into  a  half  obscurity 
the  frescoes  of  the  Cavalier  Conca,  while  allowing  the 
eye  to  rest  on  the  arabesque  mosaics  with  which  the 
hall  is  paved. 

Let  us  choose  out  some  familiars  of  the  college  of 
the  Muses  to  whom  it  seems  mannerly  to  present  our- 
selves on  entering.  To  begin  with,  there  is  Demos- 
thenes ;  the  first  glance  enables  you  to  recognize  that 
head  so  full  of  life,  and  so  spiritually  characteristic  in 
its  expression.  Antisthenes,  the  pupil  of  Socrates 
and  the  master  of  Diogenes,  with  his  lips  parted  under 
an  expressive  beard,  likewise  has  a  marked  individu- 
ality, but  his  disciple  and  he  have  an  air  of  not  know- 
ing one  another  :  this  grave  and  calm  Diogenes  looks 
to  me  as  though  he  had  been  christened  by  an  after- 
thought, unless  he  be  some  namesake.  The  Sopho- 
cles, small  and  dry,  Avith  an  official  kind  of  face,  is  in 


460  KOME. 

my  eyes  an  unknown,  Avho  Laving  preserved  only  the 
second  half  of  his  name — .  .  .  .  OKA  HI — is  profiting 
too  much  out  of  a  gallantry  of  Time.  Epicurus  is 
authentic ;  he  had  so  many  friends  that  he  Avas  often 
portrayed.  Zeno  the  Stoic  is  very  good,  as  well  as 
^Eschines,  Metrodorus,  Socrates,  and  the  sleepy  Epi- 
menides.  Meanly  executed,  the  Alcibiades  has  the 
mannered  and  almost  modern  expression  of  a  genius 
skilled  in  exploiting  a  foshionahle  infatuation  ;  it  is  a 
curious  face,  and  one  that  I  hardly  expected  to  meet 
in  that  world.  What  a  difference  between  this  spoiled 
darling  and  the  valiant  and  admirably  interpreted  fig- 
ure of  Themistocles !  Lycurgus,  Periander,  Bias, 
Euripides,  ought  not  to  be  passed  over  in  silence.  As 
I  Avas  looking  at  a  Grseco-Roman  bas-relief  of  a  mar- 
riage ceremony,  my  eyes  fell  on  a  grave  and  comely 
Avoman,  Avith  modestly  A'ciled  head  ;  it  Avas  the  friend 
of  Plato  and  Socrates,  a  hetaira  Avho  presided  over 
the  intellectual  moA'ement  of  an  epoch  summed  up  in 
the  mighty  name  f>f  Pericles.  Near  Aspasia  is  placed 
the  royal  dictator  of  the  Athenian  democracy,  Peri- 
cles, the  son  of  Xanthippus.  Intelligent,  subtle,  deli- 
cate, and  shapely  under  the  helmet  Avhicli  so  adds  to 
its  size,  this  head  has  the  rather  mocking  expression 
of  great  leaders  who  knoAV  men,  and  play  at  pulling 
the  Avires  of  the  puppets.  Found  in  the  time  of  Pius 
VL,  these  authentic  portraits  (the  names  are  en- 
graA^ed  upon  them)  liave  made  the  modern  Avorld  ac- 
quainted  Avith    tAvo   illustrious   figures    of   antiquity. 


THE  HALL  OF  THE  MUSES.  461 

Between  the  pair  is  seated  the  Tenth  of  the  Muses, 
Sappho  of  Mitjlene,  a  statue  broad  in  style  and  pure 
in  sentiment. 

To  conchide  this  summary  review,  we  have  only  to 
halt  before  the  Pierides.  This  collection  of  statues 
of  the  nine  Muses  is  really  unique,  especially  if  you 
consider  that  it  is  completed  by  the  Mnemosyne  and 
the  Apollo  Citharsedus  ;  yet  all  these  figures  are  by  no 
means  of  equal  beauty.  jVIelpomene  is  one  of  the 
best ;  her  dishevelled  hair,  intermixed  with  grapes, 
her  young  and  serious  glance,  the  action  in  her  atti- 
tude, the  heaviness  of  the  tunic,  the  noble  grace  with 
which  the  syrma  is  flung — all  give  the  goddess,  armed 
with  the  poniard,  a  passionate  expression.  Thalia  is 
more  laughing ;  she  has  for  attributes  the  pedum 
which  answers  to  pastoral  poetry,  the  comic  mask, 
and  the  tympanum  ;  she  is  seated,  the  lower  part  of 
the  body  enclosed  in  a  large  mantle,  whence  sandal- 
shod  feet  escape,  every  one  knows  that  childish  and 
frolicsome  face,  the  brow  framed  in  ivy  leaves,  which 
cast  projecting  shadows.  These  tAvo  Muses,  as  well 
as  Polyhymnia,  Clio,  Erato,  Calliope,  Terpsichore,  and 
Apollo  Musagetes,  were  discovered  in  1774  at  Tivoli, 
in  an  ancient  rustic  house  of  Cassius.  Pius  VI.  in- 
stantly acquired  these  precious  works  5  he  next  strove 
to  complete  the  procession,  and  finally  constructed  for 
the  divinities  the  octagonal  chapel  of  the  Muses.  As 
one  enumerates  the  creations  of  that  lofty,  liberal, 
poetic  spirit,  and  beholds  the  marvels  left  by  him,  it 


462  ROME. 

is  hard  in  view  of  the  persecutions  which  slew  the 
noble  old  man,  to  keep  from  asking  on  which  side 
were  true  greatness  and  civilization. 

While  I  was  wandering  through  these  halls,  in  the 
garden  the  light  had  changed ;  the  already  purpling 
rays  of  evening  Avere  falling  athwart  the  western  slopes 
of  the  Vatican,  and  the  shadows  of  the  trees  had  en- 
gulfed the  flower-beds.  As  far  as  I  could  see,  not  a 
soul  was  visible  ;  the  statues  stood  like  spectres  ;  the 
air  was  stifling  and  close  ;  the  nests  were  silent. 

Nothing  broke  the  stillness  but  the  distant  ringing 
of  a  convent  bell.  However,  as  I  Avould  surely  never 
more  return  to  these  sacred  groves  I  still  lingered. 
A  few  glimpses  and  openings  allowed  me  to  follow  the 
oblique  course  of  the  Tiber  through  the  Campagna ; 
sarcophagi  bequeathed  by  the  earliest  Christian  ages 
disclosed  themselves  among  the  brambles,  I  could 
decipher  Csesarean  inscriptions  under  the  ivy;  Diana, 
the  nymphs,  Sylvanus,  the  god  Pan,  shone  out  from 
the  masses  of  foliage ;  they  were  at  home,  and  had 
no  look  of  shivering  in  exile,  as  in  our  northern 
regions. 


EAPHAEL  AND  MICHAEL  ANGELO.  463 


CHAPTER    XXVI. 

In  the  year  of  grace  1509,  on  All  Saints'  Day, 
Julius  II.  offered  to  the  admiration  of  his  court  the 
first  three  frescoes  of  Raphael  in  the  chamber  of  the 
Segnatura,  as  well  as  the  still-unfinished  paintings 
with  which  Michael  Angelo,  since  May  8,  1508,  had 
been  decorating  the  vaults  of  the  Sixtine  Chapel. 
Nothing  had  been  seen  hitherto  comparable  to  these 
masterpieces,  Avhich  have  never  been  surpassed  in 
subsequent  times ;  so  their  appearance  assigns  a  pre- 
cise date  to  the  cidminating  point  of  the  Renaissance, 

Causes,  which  had  nothing  ambitious  about  them, 
paved  the  way  for  these  wonderful  results.  On 
being  elevated  to  the  Holy  See,  Pope  Juhus  felt  a  re- 
pugnance to  inhabiting  apartments  that  had  been  de- 
filed by  the  Borgia  family,  and  consequently  had 
others  made  ready  on  the  upper  story ;  then  he 
wished,  in  memory  of  his  uncle,  Sixtus  IV.,  to  deco- 
rate the  ceiling  of  the  chapel  which  this  pontiff  had 
built.  With  the  clear-sightedness  of  a  man  of  taste 
and  judgment,  he  entrusted  the  apartments  to  Ra- 
phael of  Urbino,  who  had  been  presented  to  him  by 
Braniante,  and,  while  fully  appreciating  Sanzio's 
gifts,  entrusted  the  vast  spaces  of  the  Sixtine  vaults 


464  ROME. 

to  Buonarotti,  who  would  fain  have  decUned  the  com- 
mission, being  ignorant  of  the  methods  of  fresco 
painting,  and  obhged  to  take  lessons  like  a  beginner 
before  executing  as  a  first  attempt  the  finest  master- 
piece of  the  kind. 

For  this  enormous  work  Bramante  had  recom- 
mended Michael  Angelo  ;  and  Michael  Angelo  recom- 
mended Raphael.  Julius  II.  held  to  his  point  however, 
and  fell  into  such  fury,  that  Buonarotti  had  to  yield. 
A  novice  as  a  painter,  though  covered  with  glory  as 
a  sculptor,  he  was  at  this  time  thirty-four  years  old ; 
Raphael  was  only  five-and-tAventy.  Both  had  drunk 
of  the  Dantean  spring,  both  had  been  subjected  to 
those  influences  exercised  by  Savonarola  over  the 
culminating  inspirations  of  the  school  of  Umbria; 
finally,  the  eldest  and  most  energetic  had  not  yet  ex- 
ercised any  ascendancy  over  the  other. 

The  first  time  I  ever  crossed  the  threshold  of  the 
Sixtine  Chapel,  the  lower  part  of  the  church, — the 
only  part  accessible  to  the  public,  was  crowded  with 
people,  because  the  sovereign  pontiff  was  about  to 
celebrate  mass ;  cardinals,  secular  and  regular,  robed 
in  grey  or  red,  furred  in  ermine,  occupied  the  benches 
of  the  sacred  college,  divided  from  the  faithful  by  a 
high  balustrade.  I  was  struck  with  the  simplicity  of 
the  building ;  a  high  long  hall  reduced  to  its  four 
walls,  without  architectural  ornaments,  and  with  rec- 
tangular windows  pierced  over  the  frieze.  To  the 
right,  a  tribune  half-grated,  with  trellis-work  for  the 


THE  SIXTINE  CHAPEL.  465 

choristers ;  at  the  bottom  a  very  simple  altar  with 
three  steps  in  front,  covered  with  a  carpet ;  beside 
this  altar,  which  has  onlj  six  tapers,  and  above  which 
rises  the  great  piece  of  the  Last  Judgment,  a  raised 
seat  for  the  pope  5 — such  is  the  Sixtine  Chapel.  It 
has  no  decoration  but  the  paintings  with  which 
it  is  entirely  covered,  to  within  some  fifteen  feet 
above  the  ground.  It  was  to  furnish  the  lower  part, 
that  Leo  X.  commissioned  Raphael  to  execute  the 
series  of  compositions  taken  from  Holy  Scripture,  of 
which  the  artist  painted  between  1515  and  1518 
eleven  cartoons,  to  be  executed  in  tapestry  at  Arras. 
During  the  service,  distracted  by  my  neighbors, 
and  not  very  free  in  my  movements,  I  had  only  a 
dim  suspicion  of  the  magnificence  of  the  Sixtine 
Chapel ;  it  was  the  first  time  I  had  witnessed  the 
ceremonial  of  this  clergy  of  princes ;  and  I  stood 
waiting  for  the  entrance  of  Pius  IX.,  Avhom  I  had 
not  then  seen.  The  heraldic  livery  of  the  Swiss 
guards,  the  costumes  of  the  chiefs  of  the  orders,  the 
magnificent  ornaments  of  the  officiating  cardinal, 
from  which  stood  out  in  all  its  pale  and  intelligent 
leanness  the  ascetic  head  of  the  learned  Dom  Pitra, 
chUd  of  S.  Benedict  and  countryman  of  S.  Bernard ; 
all  was  striking  and  novel  to  me.  When  the  pope, 
in  the  midst  of  a  royal,  military,  and  episcopal  escort, 
made  his  entrance  into  his  chapel,  vibrating  Avith  har- 
monious cries  that  seemed  to  pour  down  from  heaven 
those  strange  words,  which  Ave  may  AveU  find  angelic, 

30 


466  EOME. 

for  they  are  not  human ;  while  the  wave  of  sacer- 
dotal pomp  swept  before  the  Last  Judgment, — I  em- 
braced all  that  surrounded  me,  with  an  eye  that  Avas 
dazzled  because  the  soul  was  stirred.  The  frescoes 
of  Sixtus  IV.,  with  which  the  walls  are  peopled,  the 
dimly  discerned  ceiling,  which  appalled  me  by  its  im- 
mensity, the  drama  of  the  end  of  time ;  all  seized 
upon  me  at  once.  Then  returning  to  the  pontiff  with 
the  triple  crown,  transformed  by  the  prolongation  of 
an  enormous  cope  into  a  giant ;  to  the  king  Avho  is 
only  a  monk ;  to  the  aged  man  who  continues  the 
dynasty  of  S.  Peter,  of  S.  Sylvester,  and  of  Julius  II.; 
transported  into  the  very  presence  of  the  mighty  past, 
between  the  papacy  and  Michael  Angelo,  I  felt  that 
I  was  standing  in  the  noblest  sanctuary  that  the  world 
possesses. 

While  the  mass  lasted,  every  one  present  being 
arrayed  in  that  ceremonial  toilette,  which  only  allows 
for  both  sexes  black  with  white  linen,  and  in  which 
women  must  have  their  heads  covered  with  a  veil,  I 
had  to  content  myself,  so  far  as  the  paintings  Avent, 
with  a  general  view,  except  for  the  Last  Judgment, 
which  I  was  in  a  position  to  examine  without  any 
trouble. 

The  work  was  loaded  with  retouchings  by  Daniele 
da  Volterra,  either  to  dissemble  certain  perilous  allu- 
sions, or  to  clothe  nudities  and  even  to  efface  like- 
nesses, for  the  successors  of  Paul  Farnese  were  in 
this  respect  less  scrupulous  than  he.     Importuned  as 


THE  LAST  JUDGMENT.  467 

we  know  by  Biagio  da  Cesena,  his  master  of  cere- 
monies, who  was  represented  in  hell  as  a  punishment 
for  his  criticisms,  with  an  ass's  ears  and  a  serpent  of 
luxury  round  his  hody,  Paul  III.  answered  him  :  ''  If 
they  had  placed  thee  in  purgatory,  our  prayers  might 
have  rescued  thee  ;  but  the  power  of  the  Church  ex- 
pires on  the  threshold  of  hell,  and  the  damned  are 
there  for  ever." 

Michael  Angelo  spent  eight  years  in  the  accom- 
plishment of  this  mighty  and  terrible  undertaking  : 
he  was  nearly  sixty  when  he  began  it,  as  the  first 
half  of  the  programme  traced  by  Clement  VII.,  who 
wished  to  furnish,  as  a  pendant  to  the  Last  Judgment, 
the  Fall  of  the  Rebel  Angels,  a  subject  in  which  the 
artist  might  have  given  once  more  the  full  measure 
of  his  style  and  skill.  He  drew  his  inspiration  from 
two  poems ;  the  Inferno  of  Dante  (illustrated  in  the 
lower  part  of  the  picture,  Avhere,  like  the  poet,  he  has 
introduced  Charon  with  his  boat)  and  the  Apocalypse 
of  S.  John,  whence  proceeds  the  aerial  and  heavenly 
portion  of  that  drama  in  two  tiers,  all  the  figures  of 
which  are  in  the  foreground.  Such  had  been  the  im- 
pulse given  by  Michael  Angelo  to  academic  studies, 
to  researches  in  the  science  of  anatomy  and  to  the 
surmounting  of  difficulties  inherent  in  forced  attitudes 
and  complicated  foreshortenings,  that  this  new  work, 
a  sort  of  synoptical  picture  of  all  imaginable  feats  of 
strength,  filled  his  contemporaries  with  transports  of 
admiration.     It   exercised,  however,  a  decisive  and 


468  EOME. 

disastrous  influence,  by  substituting  means  for  the 
real  end  of  art.  The  painter  had  announced  that  he 
shoukl  surpass  himself;  he  wrote  it  to  Aretino  in 
1537  ;  so  he  made  a  prodigious  effort.  To  this  work, 
which  lacks  feeling  and  in  which  the  abuse  of  the 
mastery  of  execution  as  well  as  the  extravagance  of 
the  intention,  only  arouse  a  stupefied  approval,  we 
must  oppose  Michael  Angelo  himself,  young,  still 
mindful  of  the  examples  of  Ghirlandajo,  of  the  celes- 
tial visions  of  the  Umbrian  School,  and  of  the  teach- 
ings of  Savonarola ;  Michael  Angelo  making  over 
again  after  Moses  the  semi-pastoral  poem  of  Genesis, 
and  uniting  on  the  vaults  of  this  same  Sixtine  Chapel 
the  old  feeling  for  the  beautiful,  Avith  an  added  foith 
in  the  mystery  of  the  Scriptures.  In  his  old  age  he 
wished  to  do  better  and  more ;  he  dared  much  more, 
but  he  overshot  his  mark. 

Antonio  da  San  Gallo  constructed  the  Pauline 
Chapel  for  Pope  Paul  III.,  who  had  it  decorated  with 
large  frescoes  :  Buonarotti,  become  undistinguishable, 
falls  into  entire  accord  with  Zuccari  and  with  Lorenzo 
Sabbatini  of  Bologna.  Let  us  hasten  to  remark  as  an 
extenuating  circumstance,  that  the  two  frescoes  by  the 
author  of  the  Pensieroso,  have  been  ill  preserved  and 
copiously  restored  ;  but  there  are  clear  traces  of  the 
original  composition,  the  idea,  and  the  general  design. 
The  one  representing  the  Conversion  of  S.  Paul  on 
the  road  to  Damascus  is  coldly  academic ;  the  Saint's 
forced    attitude    is   merely   the  pose   inflicted    on    a 


THE  SIXTINE  CHAPEL.  469 

model ;  Yasari  would  have  been  less  slack,  and  he 
could  not  have  been  harsher.  In  the  Crucifixion  of 
S.  Peter,  placed  opposite,  the  apostle,  executed  with 
his  head  dowmvards,  raises  it,  already  injected  with 
blood,  by  a  convulsive  effort  which  contributes  to  the 
anatomic  sonata,  and  gives  it  a  skilful  and  most  horri- 
ble grimace  for  its  theme.  We  Avould  have  attributed 
to  a  pupil  of  Bronzino  the  no  less  morbid  representa- 
tion of  S.  Paul,  in  the  first  picture,  thrown  over  on 
his  side,  blind  and  stupefied,  Avhile  his  horse  takes  to 
flight,  and  his  companions  stand  round  him  in  terror. 
Postures,  muscles,  torsos,  all  are  instructive  details, 
forms  sanctioned  by  convention,  yes  ;  but  soul,  senti- 
ment, inspiration, — seek  for  these  !  You  discover  in 
the  sky  a  Choir  of  Angels,  in  front  of  whom  the 
Christ  launches  against  his  crushed  foe.  God  plung- 
ing from  the  clouds  head  foremost,  like  a  sunbeam  or 
a  rock  ;  this  has  been  borrowed  by  Tintoretto  in  his 
Miracle  of  S.  Mark. 

BetAveen  the  not  very  frequent  services,  the  para- 
phernalia of  worship  do  not  encumber  the  wide  Pres- 
byterium  of  the  Sixtine  chapel;  the  vast  oblong 
hall,  with  painters  at  work  in  it,  puts  on  the  appear- 
ance of  a  studio.  The  steps  by  which  you  mount  to 
the  altar,  and  the  lateral  steps  leading  to  the  choir 
stalls,  are  covered  with  a  green  carpet.  On  Sundays 
this  brings  out  most  effectively  the  long,  trailing  pur- 
ple mantles,  and  on  Aveek  days  affords  relief  to  eyes 
fatigued  by  the  mass  of  paintings.     Let  us  not  forget 


470  ROME. 

that  besides  the  frescoes  of  the  ceiling,  the  friezes,  and 
the  Last  Judgment,  the  nave  is  covered  with  twelve 
large  ones,  divided  from  one  another  by  settings  that 
simulate  pilasters,  and  enhanced  by  arabesques  match- 
ing the  golden  chandeliers.  The  neighborhood  of 
Michael  Angelo  does  cruel  Avrong  to  these  Avorks, 
which  are  really  interesting  and  important ;  for  they 
were  executed  between  1475  and  1500,  under  Sixtus 
IV.,  Innocent  YIII.,  and  Alexander  VI.,  and  are  due 
to  the  coryphsei  of  the  most  brilliant  epoch  of  the 
Precursors. 

The  six  frescoes  on  the  left  illustrate  passages  from 
Exodus  and  Deuteronomy  )  those  on  the  right  are 
taken  from  the  narratives  of  the  Gospel. 

Near  the  altar  is  a  picture  by  Perugino,  the  Bap- 
tism of  Christ  on  the  banks  of  the  Jordan,  a  work 
executed  in  conjunction  with  Andrea  of  Assisi,  and 
in  which  the  picturesque  landscape  detracts  from  the 
interest  of  the  figures,  the  pendant  represents  the 
Journey  of  Moses  and  Zipporah  to  strive  against 
Pharaoh.  It  is  the  moment  when  the  prophet  sees 
himself  menaced  on  his  road  by  an  angel  Avho  is 
turned  aside  by  the  daughter  of  Jethro,  symbolical  of 
the  Virgin  interceding.  The  emblem  has  been  seized 
with  a  rare  sentiment  by  Luca  Signorelli,  the  favorite 
pupil  of  Piero  della  Francesca,  that  conquest  made  by 
Perugino,  which  Michael  Angelo,  who  loved  the  artist, 
could  not  entirely  get  over.  This  work  has  a  charm; 
it  is  superior  to  Perugino's  picture  :  the  Angel  seen 


FRESCOES  IN  THE  SIXTINE.  471 

from  behind,  the  placid  Moses,  Zipporah,  the  land- 
scape, all  has  been  nourished  on  Florentine  ambrosia. 
The  most  eminent  of  the  pupils  of  Filippo  Lippi,  San- 
dro  Botticelli,  Avhom  Sixtus  IV.  employed  to  sujaerin- 
tend  these  decorations,  has  grouped  in  one  frame, 
IVIoses  slaying  the  Egyptian, — Watering  the  Flocks 
of  Jethro, — Putting  to  Flight  the  Midianite  Herds- 
men,— and  Coming  to  the  Burning  Bush.  Opposite, 
the  same  painter  has  placed  Christ  tempted  by  Satan ; 
a  subject  admirably  arranged,  peopled  with  graceful 
figures,  and  faces  of  life-like  serenity. 

Farther  off,  Jesus  calls  to  him  Peter  and  Andrew, 
as  Moses  had  called  Aaron  and  the  chiefs  of  the  tribes 
who  followed  him  out  of  Egypt  through  the  waters  of 
the  Red  Sea ;  a  parallel  set  forth  in  two  splendid 
frescoes.  Cosimo  Rosselli  executed  one,  which  is  too 
rich  in  details ;  the  other  is  by  the  first  master  of 
Michael  Angelo,  Domenico  Ghirlandajo,  who,  in  the 
apse  of  S.  Maria  Novella,  reproduced  so  curiously,  in 
his  Life  of  the  Virgin,  the  usages  and  fine  society 
of  the  fifteenth  century.  The  scene  transpires  on 
the  banks  of  a  river  which  winds  off  in  the  distance 
between  buildings  and  grassy  slopes  ;  a  poetical  set- 
ting, in  the  foreground  of  Avhich  are  the  truly  religious 
figures  of  Christ  and  the  two  Apostles  who  are  to  fol- 
low him.  Opposite  the  Adoration  of  the  Golden  Calf, 
an  episode  in  the  representation  of  the  tables  of  the 
law,  Rosselli  has  painted  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount, 
the  charming  landscape  of  which  is  supposed  to  be  by 


^72  KOME. 

Piero  di  Cosimo.  Graceful  figures  and  well  rendered 
action  are  the  salient  merits  of  this  picture,  some 
truthful  groups  of  attentive  Avomen  being  especially 
good.  Peter  Perugiuo  is  superior  to  Botticelli  repre- 
senting Corah,  Dathan,  and  Abiram,  where  the  last 
mystic  of  the  Umbrian  school  seems  to  add  size  to 
its  other  qualities.  Never  has  the  Perugian  master 
shown  himself  so  simple  and  so  noble  as  in  the  Christ 
handing  the  keys  to  St.  Peter :  in  the  background 
are  two  fine  triumphal  arches,  between  which  we 
recognize  the  polygonal  temple  that  Raphael  could 
not  have  copied  in  his  Spozalizzio,  as  is  said ;  for  at 
the  time  when  he  painted  it,  he  had  not  yet  come  to 
Rome.  Both  of  them,  Perugino  first,  then  Sanzio, 
borrowed  this  detail  from  a  charming  bas-relief  by 
Orcagna  on  the  tabernacle  of  Or'  San-Michele,  where 
is  represented  the  Marriage  of  the  Virgin,  exactly  as 
Raphael  reproduced  it  a  hundred  and  twelve  years 
after  Orcagna's  death.  I  do  not  knoAv  whether  I 
ought  to  claim  priority  for  this  observation  which  at 
all  events  I  have  never  seen  anyAvhere. 

To  the  Promulgation  of  the  Ancient  LaAv,  followed 
by  the  Death  of  Moses,  by  Signorelli,  answer  in  the 
evangelical  chronicles  the  Institution  of  the  Eucharist 
and  the  Passion  of  Christ.  To  put  himself  in  har- 
mony Avith  the  sequence  to  the  Mosaic  history,  Cosimo 
Rosselli  Avas  careful  to  shoAv  us,  beyond  an  open  loggia 
behind  the  Cania,  the  distant  drama  of  the  garden  of 
Olives,  and  the  lines  of  the  cross  on  the  horizon.     The 


CEILING  OF  THE  SIXTINE.  473 

principal  subject  is  admirable  for  its  gravity  and  re- 
strained emotion ;  Judas  has  all  the  air  of  some  usurer. 
In  spite  of  the  Flemish  retouchings  of  the  sixteenth 
century,  described  by  Taja,  this  fresco  is  extremely 
fine  :  Luca  Signorelli  and  Sandro  Botticelli  seem  to 
me  to  occupy  the  first  rank  in  this  interesting  exhibi- 
tion, for  the  rest,  Michael  Angelo,  Avhile  extinguish- 
ing the  torch  of  the  first,  even  here  pays  him  homage 
by  numerous  borrowings  from  the  Last  Judgment  at 
Orvieto.  These  two  precursors  ended  their  days  in 
obscurity,  especially  Botticelli,  who,  after  having 
shone  with  a  livelier  brilliance,  was  reduced  jn  old 
age  to  get  his  bread  by  a  subterfuge.  Having  de- 
posited large  chests  of  great  weight  and  well  sealed 
in  the  Hospital  of  kSanta  Mavia  Nuova  of  Florence, 
and  promised  to  make  this  house  of  refuge  his  legatee, 
he  Avas  the  object  of  devoted  attentions  up  to  the  time 
of  his  death.  But  when  this  occurred,  in  1515,  they 
opened  the  chests,  and  found  in  them  only  stones. 

And  now  let  us  stretch  ourselves  out  on  the  green 
carpet  of  the  cardinals ;  let  us  make  a  piUow  of  a 
footstool,  and,  like  Jacob,  let  us  gaze  upon  the  heavens 
opening. 

In  order  to  reduce  to  a  certain  system  the  figures 
which  he  designed  to  create,  to  vary  their  proportions, 
to  multiply  their  number  without  introducing  confu- 
sion, to  diversify  the  surface,  and  to  graduate  the  in- 
terest, ^lichael  Angelo  gave  to  his  enormous  work  an 
architectural    background  which   unites   the  various 


474  KOME. 

groups  in  one  mighty  symmetry.  He  simulated  on 
the  border  vertical  pilasters,  adorned  with  bas-reliefs, 
as  well  as  an  entablature  on  which  appears  to  rest  a 
vaulting,  divided  into  arches;  these  produce  a  series 
of  central  medallions,  forming  nine  deep  openings.  In 
consequence  of  this  design,  and  by  the  help  of  a 
linear  decoration,  clear  in  tone,  and  thrown  out  by 
projections  of  shadoAV,  the  artist  has  transformed 
into  a  storied  vault  what  is  really  only  a  ceiling. 
Thus  he  could  place  figures  as  large  as  possible  in 
front,  forming  a  near  foreground  with  less  formidable 
groups,  introduced  in  a  series  of  subjects  in  Avhicli 
the  interest  was  to  centre.  These  subjects  are  taken 
from  Genesis  and  other  books  of  the  Bible.  The 
ceiling  being  very  lofty^  the  figures  in  the  medallions 
are  not  less  than  between  seven  and  eight  feet  in 
height,  a  size  calculated  with  such  skill  that  the  spec- 
tator embraces  the  details  with  the  whole,  and  without 
effort,  in  one  limpid  and  radiant  vision. 

On  the  sides  between  the  Avindows  are  the  Prophets 
and  the  Sibyls,  strange  impersonations,  truly  ancient 
types  of  a  theogony  and  an  art  that  are  new ;  they 
seem  to  bear  the  vaidt  on  their  heads,  and  raise  it 
still  higher.  There  have  never  been  called  to  the 
service  of  an  illusion  such  magnificent  creations  as 
these  figures,  so  full  of  life,  so  solemn,  so  tormented 
in  spirit,  even  as  the  holy  books  describe  them,  and 
redeeming  their  incoherence  by  simplicity,  by  the 
suppression  of  every  trivial   ornament,  by  the   truth 


Cumaean  Sibyl,  Ceiling  of  Sixtine  Chapel,  Michael 
Angelo 


THE  PROPHETS  AND  SIBYLS.  475 

of  the  draperies  in  all  their  magnificent  amplitude. 
Genii  and  dainty  emblematical  figures  accompany 
and  harmonize  these  colossi  of  beauty — yes,  beauty ; 
of  a  kind  Avhich  is  accessible  even  to  the  vulgar,  and 
which  subsequently  Michael  Angelo  disdained  for  the 
exaggerations  of  force.  The  Erythrajan  Sibyl,  whose 
head  is  poised  with  admirable  skill,  has  a  profile  of 
exquisite  purity  ;  in  an  attitude  gracefidly  contrived 
to  bring  out  exquisite  arms,  the  Delphic  Sibyl  is  not 
only  very  fine,  but  extremely  attractive  and  charm- 
ing with  her  vague  and  dreamy  expression.  These 
legendary  Pythonesses  have  an  absent,  half-uncon- 
scious air  5  they  listen  with  amazement  to  what  the 
divine  Spirit  forces  them  to  annovmce,  without  being 
able  to  understand  it. 

I  am  particularly  struck  by  the  extraordinary  as- 
pect of  the  Prophets ;  one  seems  to  have  always 
dreamt  of  them  like  this.  Their  images  disclose 
beings  of  another  faith,  of  another  race,  than  those  of 
Greece;  as  robust,  but  driven  by  the  spirit  within  them 
and  consumed  by  study.  Their  powerful  heads,  whose 
beauty  is  Avholly  intellectual,  a  source  of  expression 
unknown  among  the  Greeks,  have  the  air  of  discover- 
ing the  decrees  of  the  future,  or  of  succumbmg  to  the 
fatigues  of  inner  toils ;  it  seems  as  if  the  breath  of 
God  had  burnt  them  !  The  dogmatic  epopee  of  the 
Bible,  fixed  in  the  youthful  memories  of  Michael  An- 
gelo by  the  paraphrases  of  Savonarola,  is  illustrated 
here  with  the  impetuosity  of  a  Dantesque  poet,  and 


476  EOME. 

the  sincerity  of  a  Christian  who  believes  the  sacred 
books. 

When  the  last  paintings  of  Michael  Angelo  in  the 
Sixtine  Chapel  were  revealed  to  a  waiting  world,  con- 
temporaries lavished  npon  them  all  the  panegyrics 
which  had  been  really  deserved  by  the  first.  Bene- 
detto Varchi,  Ascanio  Condivi,  Vasari,  beholding  the 
Last  Judgment,  cry  out  in  chorus  :  "  God  gave  such 
mighty  gifts  to  this  chosen  one  to  show  that  he  be- 
longs to  heaven Blessed  are  they  who  are 

born  in  these  days  and  can  look  upon  prodigies  that 
they  would  never  have  dreamed  of!"  Finally  they 
declare  that  "  God  has  sent  this  masterpiece  here  be- 
low to  teach  men  the  power  of  the  heavenly  intelli- 
gence, when,  with  the  divinity  of  skill  and  grace 
poured  down,  it  descends  for  a  moment  upon  the 
earth."  These  are  rather  vivid  words,  but  if  you 
apply  them  to  some  of  the  principal  biblical  scenes 
of  the  Sixtine  vault,  I  do  not  see  anything  to  modify 
in  them. 

Sovereign  authority  is  so  inherent  in  the  giant  of  the 
Renaissance,  that  he  seems  unconsciously  to  breathe 
something  of  himself  into  all  his  impersonations  of 
supreme  power.  It  has  been  said  that  he  has  de- 
picted himself  in  the  likeness  of  Julius  II.;  people 
think  they  come  upon  him  also  in  the  stricken  and 
inspired  heads  of  the  Prophets  ;  in  his  Moses  w^e  hear 
him  breathe  ;  and  the  Father  of  the  creation  is  more 
than  ever  Michael  Angelo.     He  too  has  created,  with- 


THE  CREATION  OF  MAN.  477 

out  a  reminiscence  of  pagan  antiquity,  and  created  in 
perfection,  the  Man  and  the  Woman,  prototypes  un- 
known until  then.  As  for  the  Father,  ^^ principium 
etfonsP  it  is  Michael  Angelo  who  has  conceived  the 
least  commonplace  image  of  the  Being  who  repro- 
duced himself  in  us,  and  launched  it,  either  across  the 
chaos  which  the  resistless  will  is  dispersing,  or  on  the 
waters  over  which  it  moves  like  the  breath  of  a  spirit, 
or  in  the  clouds  where  it  kindles  the  stars  :  three 
frescoes  as  strange  as  they  are  sublime. 

God  in  fact  draws  forth  from  the  soil,  as  a  reflec- 
tion of  himself,  the  First  Man,  whom  we  see  on  an 
inclined  plane,  as  on  the  edge  of  a  planet,  starting 
into  life,  placid,  wondering,  naked  on  the  naked  earth. 
Force,  elegance,  and  subtle  harmony  of  form  have 
produced  nothing  in  painting  to  be  compared  to  this ; 
the  innocent,  expressive  head,  in  which  thought  has 
just  dawned,  in  which  instinctive  gratitude  is  the 
prelude  to  adoration,  is  a  touching  inspiration,  and  so 
it  is  modern  and  Christian.  The  admirable  pose  of 
Adam  half-recumbent,  resting  on  one  elbow  with  the 
other  arm  stretched  out  towards  God,  this  attitude 
which  from  the  right  shoulder  to  the  foot  gives  a 
nobly  balanced  outline, — had,  marvellous  to  say,  been 
drawn  by  a  second-rate  painter,  fifty  years  before,  in 
the  frescoes  of  the  green  cloister  of  S.  Maria  No- 
vella: only  Paolino  Ucello,  one  of  the  first  to  study 
the  theories  of  perspective,  did  not  get  beyond  a 
happy  sketch.     Wrapped  in  a  dark  flying  drapery, 


478  KOME. 

upheld  by  a  group  of  angels  who  crowd  into  it  as  into 
a  nest,  God  the  Father,  Olympian  and  serene,  hovers 
in  the  air ;  approaching  our  planet,  he  reaches  out  to- 
wards the  extended  arm  of  his  creature,  and  with  the 
index-finger  touching  that  of  the  first  man,  imparts 
to  him  the  vital  fluid,  and  brings  to  life  within  him 
that  spark  of  light  which  is  the  soul.  There  is  here 
an  entirely  new  idea,  which  seems  as  if  it  had  been 
inspired  by  modern  science — the  transmission  of  life 
by  the  electric  contact  of  two  fingers  Avhich  meet. 
The  group  of  seraphim  surrounding  the  Father  of  the 
universe,  while  it  adds  to  the  charming  effect  of  the 
composition,  enhances  the  majesty  of  God  and  the 
gravity  of  his  presence.  This  animated  group,  also, 
brings  out  more  perfectly  Adam's  isolation  on  that 
bold  and  barren  slope  Avhich  in  no  way  distracts  our 
attention  from  the  first  movements,  the  first  glance, 
the  first  thoughts,  of  the  earliest  son  of  the  earth. 
The  Gothic  painters,  and  Dutch  masters,  would  have 
loaded  the  scene  with  the  cages  and  forcing-houses  of 
the  Jardin  des  Plantes.  I  do  not  hesitate  to  pro- 
nounce this  fresco  to  be  the  loftiest  in  idea,  in  style, 
and  in  powerful  poetic  effect,  of  all  the  paintings  to 
which  the  world  has  given  its  admiration.  For  this 
reason  I  have  felt  justified  in  speaking  about  it  at 
some  length  ;  but  in  truth  the  eight  other  subjects,  if 
the  very  lessons  of  such  a  school  did  not  teach  us  the 
value  of  being  concise,  would  bear  discussion  quite  as 
well.     The  Creation  of  the  Woman  who,  born  of  the 


THE  FALL.  479 

side  of  the  slumbering  Adam,  throws  herself  forward 
towards  her  Creator, — sooner  awake,  readier  to  pre- 
sent herself,  than  the  IMan,  also  reveals  to  us  beauties 
that  have  no  rivals.  God  eyes  her  pensively,  severely, 
without  illusion ;  nothing  could  be  more  imposing  than 
the  sibylline  majesty  of  that  draped  figure,  Avho  reads 
the  future  and  foresees  the  annals  of  the  world  down 
to  Calvary. 

It  is  for  the  next  subject,  the  Fall  of  Man  and  his 
expidsion  from  Eden,  that  the  artist  has  reserved,  so 
far  as  the  woman  goes,  all  the  philtres  of  the  foun- 
tain of  beauty.  Once  engaged  in  the  perilous  work 
of  her  sex,  Eve  becomes  wholly  resistless ;  stooping 
in  a  posture  which  shows  her  charms  at  the  best,  at 
the  foot  of  the  tree  to  which  her  companion  already 
stretches  out  his  hand,  she  turns  tOAvards  the  serpent, 
whose  androgynous  body  is  coiled  around  the  trunk, 
eyes  Avhich  try  their  power,  while  the  treasures  of 
her  bosom  are  directed  on  the  side  of  Adam.  Thus 
the  representation  of  the  first  woman  has  a  sort  of 
double  significance ;  God  created  the  mother  of  human 
creatures,  splendid  for  fecundity  ;  the  Serpent  trans- 
forms her,  and  produces  the  kSiren.  Michael  Angelo 
has  made  her  so  lovely  that  Raphael  came  and  copied 
her  Avith  his  own  hand  ;  Lawrence  acquired  this  draw- 
ing, which  I  have  seen  at  Oxford. 

Many  of  these  compositions  have  drawn  their  in- 
spiration from  a  master  little  known  among  us,  but 
great,    since   he  possessed  in   embryo   the   style   of 


480  ROME. 

Michael  Angelo,  though  preceding  him  by  nearly  a 
century.  There  is  some  analogy  between  the  two 
careers  :  Jacopo  della  Querela  (of  Siena),  for  whose 
works  people  contended,  was  harassed  and  oppressed 
by  two  towns  Avhich  tore  him  from  one  another,  just 
as  Buonarotti  was  by  Pope  Julius  and  the  Medici. 
It  was  in  1506  and  1507,  fifteen  months  before  under- 
taking the  roof  of  the  Sixtine,  that  Michael  Angelo 
saw  the  bas-reliefs  Avhich  frame  the  portal  of  S.Petronio 
of  Bologna.  This  shows  the  empire  of  tradition,  and 
in  no  way  lessens  the  glory  of  Buonarotti ;  it  would 
be  otherwise  if  his  work  had  remained  inferior,  as  is 
the  case  Avith  the  Eve  of  the  Barberini  Palace,  which 
inspired  by  the  first  fresco  of  the  Sixtine,  adds  noth- 
ing to  the  renoAvn  of  Domenichino. 

The  Sacrifice  of  Noah,  the  Deluge,  and  the  Drunk- 
enness of  Noah,  complete  this  incomparable  series ; 
the  last  subject  is  striking  from  its  mixture  of  grace 
and  gravity  which,  considering  the  scope,  is  very  re- 
markable. On  the  pendentives  of  these  painted 
vaultings,  one  woidd  be  quite  as  much  struck  by  a 
dozen  other  subjects,  if  they  were  larger;  among  them 
we  will  content  ourselves  by  pointing  out  the  scene 
of  the  Brazen  Serpent,  in  Avhich  we  cannot  behold 
without  emotion  a  dying  Avoman  stretching  forth  her 
arms ;  then  Judith,  after  her  expedition,  dexterously 
arranging,  in  a  basket  balanced  on  the  head  of  an 
attendant,  the  head  of  Holofernes.  The  heroic  crim- 
inal is  seen  from   behind ;  you  expect  her  to  turn 


THE  CEILING  OF  THE  SIXTINE.  481 

round,  such  skill  has  the  painter  shown  in  making 
you  divine  that  she  must  he  of  a  triumphant  beauty. 
But  why  indulge  in  dissertation,  when  homage  is 
so  much  more  becoming !  Let  us  conclude  by  not- 
ing an  impression  that  every  one  has  felt.  On  the 
days  when  you  have  visited  the  Sixtine,  it  is  impos- 
sible to  take  any  interest  in  other  works  of  art ;  even 
statuary  seems  gloomy  and  stiff.  No  other  painter  sub- 
jugates you  with  such  absolute  tyranny,  nor  could  there 
be  any  better  proof  than  this  of  the  sovereignty  of 
that  baptized  Phidias  Avho  was  called  Michael  Angelo. 


31 


482  KOME. 


CHAPTER    XXVII. 

The  upper  story  of  the  southern  portion  of  the 
Vatican  is  devoted  to  Raphael  and  his  auxiliaries. 
The  Rooms  or  Stanze  are  the  poorly  distributed  and 
uninhabitable  apartments,  which  Julius  II.  constructed 
above  the  Borgia  quarters  ;  the  Loggie,  commenced 
by  Bramante,  are  surmounted  by  galleries  erected, 
from  1515  onwards,  by  Raphael,  and  decorated  by 
that  artist,  assisted  by  his  school.  Before  halting  in 
the  Loggie,  let  us  enter  a  sort  of  antechamber,  justly 
called  Hall  of  the  Chiaroscuri,  and  bend  our  steps 
towards  a  narrow  door  always  kept  shut,  but  which 
an  attendant  will  open  for  us :  it  leads  to  a  small 
chapel  which  many  strangers  miss,  and  in  which  we 
shall  find  the  oldest  Florentine  frescoes  that  the  Vat- 
ican has  preserved.  How  this  oratory,  which  was 
finished  by  Nicholas  V.,  escaped  the  demolitions  of 
Julius  II.,  who  swept  away  from  these  apartments  all 
the  paintings  of  Luca  Signorelli  and  Perugino,  save 
one  for  Avhich  Sanzio  interceded, — how  Leo  X., 
Clement  VII.,  and  after  them  the  partisans  of  the 
decline,  failed  to  substitute  for  the  work  of  the  Beato 
Angelico  some  pompous  mediocrities  of  Lauretti, — 
we  will  never  know. 


Supposed  Portrait  of  Raphael,  by  Himself,  now 

Designated    "Ritratto   Di   Un   Ignoto" 

Rodolfo  del   Ghirlandaio 


FRA  ANGELICO'S  FRESCOES.  483 

The  cliapel  was  begun  by  Fra  Angelico  under 
Eugenius  IV.  Another  pontiff,  Nicholas  V.,  the 
true  founder  of  the  Vatican  magnificence,  passed  h^ng 
hours  in  this  boudoir  for  prayer,  by  the  side  of  Fra 
Angelico,  his  old  companion  of  the  Dominicans  of 
Florence.  Wliile  the  monk  plied  his  brushes,  they 
discussed  projects  for  rebuilding  S.  Peter's,  for  organ- 
izing the  Vatican  library,  for  concentrating  in  Rome 
the  intellectual  forces  of  the  West. 

Six  of  the  frescoes  are  devoted  to  the  life  of  S. 
Stephen,  the  five  others  to  that  of  S.  Laurence.  In 
these  Fra  Angelico  has  represented  Sixtus  II.  and  S. 
Peter  under  the  likeness  of  his  friend  and  benefactor, 
Thomas  of  Sarzana  (Nicholas  V.).  The  Consecration 
of  the  two  deacons  bequeathes  to  us  true  likenesses 
of  the  pope  Avho  celebrated  the  great  jubilee  of  1450. 
A  dreamy,  delicate,  and  mystic  head,  with  mild,  pene- 
trating eyes,  and  a  small,  rather  sarcastic  mouth, 
imder  a  big  nose,  so  long  as  to  end  by  becoming 
pointed — there  we  have  the  strangest  of  sympathetic 
faces. 

If  we  consider  ideas  and  not  processes,  this  chapel 
is  on  the  straight  road  which  starts  from  Gentile  da 
Fabriano  and  Masaccio,  and  ends  with  Raphael. 

We  will  now  return  to  the  Loggie. 

It  was  a  perilous  task  to  undertake  after  Michael 
Angelo  to  illustrate  the  Bible,  and  especially  to  repro- 
duce the  creation  of  the  world.  Raphael  had  the  art 
of  being   great   in   scanty  dimensions ;     his   compo- 


484  ROME. 

sitions,  while  lofty  in  style,  yet  preserve  the  familiar 
poetry  of  the  legendary  narratives.  The  first  acts  of 
the  creation,  those  in  which  Jehovah  overpowers 
matter,  bear  comparison  with  the  Sixtine. 

It  is  not  possible  to  assign  the  exact  part  of  these 
mighty  works,  performed  by  each  artist  in  a  phalanx 
containing  such  names  as  Giulio  Romano,  Timoteo 
Viti  and  his  brother  Pietro,  Buonaccorsi,  Giovanni  da 
Udine,  Vincenzio  of  San  Geminiano,  Perino  dellaVaga, 
Lnca  Penni,  Maturino  of  Florence,  Schizzone,  Poly- 
dorio  da  Caravaggio,  Puppini,  Pellegrino  of  Modena, 
Crocchia,  Jacomone  of  Faenza,  Raffaellino  del  Colle, 
Ramenghi  of  Bologna  (Bagnacavallo),  Pistoia,  Ber- 
nardo Catelani,  Sacco,  L.  B.  Catelani,  Garofalo, 
Gaudenzio  Ferrari,  Pagani,  Pietro  Campana,  Pietro 
de  Bagnaja,  Mosca,  Michel  Cockier  or  Coxie,  of 
Malines  ;  Bernard  Van  Orley,  Marco  Antonio  (Rai- 
mondi),  Andrea  of  Salerno,  etc.   .   .  I  leave  out  half. 

The  Stanze  commenced  by  Julius  II.  are  still  more 
important :  the  two  earliest  as  being  the  supreme  ex- 
pression of  Raphael's  genius;  the  two  others  as  works 
of  art  and  as  historical  documents. 

In  the  Heliodorus  driven  from  the  Temple  by 
angels  Avith  rods,  on  the  prayer  of  the  high  priest 
Onias,  the  artist  followed  an  inspiration  of  Julius  II., 
whose  dream  was  to  expel  the  French  once  and  for 
ever  from  Italy.  On  his  death-bed  he  was  heard  to 
call  out — "  Away  from  Itsxiy,  all  barbarians  !"  Thus 
the  liigh   priest  is  Julius  II.  5  Heliodorus,  prefect  of 


THE  STANZE.  485 

Seleucus,  king  of  Syria,  is,  if  not  the  king  of  France, 
at  any  rate  a  representation  of  his  beaten  generals : 
Pope  Julius  comes  upon  the  scene,  royally  borne  on 
the  sella  gestatoria.  Giulio  Pippi  worked  much  less 
than  Peter  of  Cremona  at  this  composition,  in  -which 
the  last,  with  his  more  supple  modelling,  sometimes 
gets  the  credit  for  a  very  fine  group  of  Jewish  women, 
so  fine  indeed  that  many  judges  attribute  it,  not  Avith- 
out  probability,  to  Paphael  himself,  who  certainly  has 
had  a  hand  in  the  picture.  Who  but  he  would  have 
given,  in  two  of  the  Seggettieri  of  the  sovereign 
pontiff,  the  portraits  of  Bramante  and  Giuho  Ro- 
mano ? 

The  Mass  of  Bolsena,  where  the  artist  has  availed 
himself  of  the  irregular  shape  of  the  walls  caused  by 
the  hollowing  out  of  a  window  in  the  centre,  depicts 
the  miracle  which  came  to  pass  on  one  occasion  when 
a  prelate,  saying  mass  at  S.  Christina,  was  seized  with 
a  doubt  as  to  the  real  presence  at  the  very  moment 
of  consecration  ;  Avhereupon  the  Host  in  his  hands 
began  to  bleed.  Admirable  in  movement,  in  compo- 
sition, and  in  expression,  this  fresco  of  deep  and  re- 
splendent color  is  one  of  those  in  which  Raphael's 
hand  is  most  easily  recognized. 

Another  evidence — in  the  same  room — of  vehe- 
ment anti-French  policy,  is  the  deliverance  of  S. 
Peter,  freed  from  his  prison  by  an  angel.  This  mas- 
terpiece symbolizes  with  a  hyperbolical  majesty  the 
escape  of  Leo  X.  in  the  frock  of  a  monk,  when,  as 


486  ROME. 

legate  of  the  holy  see  m  1512,  he  was  left  a  prisoner 
in  the  hands  of  the  French  after  the  battle  of  Ra- 
venna. Raphael  must  have  supermtended  closely  the 
execution  of  this  powerful  work,  into  which  he  intro- 
duced effects  entirely  new ;  the  blue  rays  of  the 
moon  and  the  red  glare  of  the  torches  contend  with 
the  white  light,  which,  forming  a  zone  around  the 
angel,  projects  such  a  blaze  that  the  corselets  of  the 
gaolers  seem,  according  to  the  expression  of  Vasari, 
"  rather  polished  than  painted."  From  these  opposi- 
tions result,  not  discordances,  but  complex  harmonies 
introduced  w^ith  a  power  of  coloring  that  in  a  fresco 
of  that  date  amazes  us.  In  our  Paris  copy,  these 
subtleties  have  not  been  understood ;  the  effects 
struggle  crudely,  resulting  in  a  conception  that  Rem- 
brandt would  have  admired,  glassy  and  spotted.  The 
apostle  suddenly  aroused,  flying  with  the  confident 
serenity  of  a  faith  that  nothing  can  ever  surprise,  and 
the  graceful  and  radiant  angel  conducting  him,  form 
a  group  in  which  we  have  what  may  be  called  reality 
in  the  ideal. 

On  the  compartments  of  the  vault  have  been 
painted,  above  Heliodorus, — Moses  before  the  burn- 
ing bush  I  above  the  Mass  of  Bolsena, — the  Sacrifice 
of  Abraham,  a  lesson  to  those  whose  faith  wavers ; 
above  the  Attila, — Noah  coming  forth  from  the  ark, 
a  commentary  no  less  expressive ;  finally,  above  the 
Deliverance  of  S.  Peter  (symbolizing  Leo  X.), — the 
Vision  of  Jacob  ;  a  flattering  allusion  to  the  promises 


THE  STANZE.  487 

of  the  reign  and  the  future  of  the  house  of  Medici. 
Although  damaged,  and  harshly  cut  off  by  a  sky 
which  has  been  repainted  in  a  violent  blue,  these  fig- 
ures are  exquisite  :  people  hardly  ever  look  at  them, 
but  they  make  a  mistake,  since  for  the  most  part  they 
are  the  work  of  Raphael  himself.  Still  less  attention 
is  paid  to  the  lower  portion  of  this  chamber  of  Helio- 
dorus,  where  in  a  series  of  small  grisailles,  monumen- 
tal and  calm,  Polydorio  da  Caravaggio  has  painted 
antique  and  rustic  scenes  with  very  considerable 
grace.  It  is  true  that  time  speedily  damaged  them, 
and  that  Ave  do  not  always  find  the  original  idea  pre- 
served in  the  Avork  of  Carlo  Maratti  who  restored 
them,  minutely  assisted  in  his  researches  by  the  ar- 
chaeological zeal  of  Clement  XI,  These  chiaroscuri 
represent  the  Blessings  of  Peace  (in  that  golden  age 
1513) ;  Tillage,  Harvest,  Vintage  ;  Commerce  giving 
animation  to  the  shores  of  the  sea,  and  Warriors  em- 
ploying their  leisure  to  study  antiquities :  they  are 
observing  the  statue  of  Marforio.  Some  of  these 
subjects  have  been  destroyed,  because,  in  the  seven- 
teenth century,  they  placed  underneath  the  Heliodo- 
rus  a  chimney-piece,  on  the  sides  of  Avhich  the  artists 
perpetuated  the  custom  of  inscribing  their  names. 
Let  us  call  the  attention  of  the  curious  to  this  multi- 
tude of  autographs,  which  opens  Avith  the  signature  of 
Poussin,  dated  1627.  The  chamber  Avas  completed 
towards  the  end  of  1514. 

Without  stopping  noAv  in  the  sanctuary  of  the  Seg- 


488  KOME. 

natura,  we  will  cross  it  to  the  following  Stanza,  called 
of  Charlemagne,  Avhere  we  find  a  complete  tack  in 
the  pontifical  policy.  Leo  X.  is  now  for  extolling  to 
the  clouds  what  he  had  formerly  attempted  to  crush 
by  his  anathemas  :  the  Incendio  del  Borgo  marks  the 
transition.  This  pontiff,  by  the  success  of  the  inter- 
view at  Bologna  after  the  Battle  of  Marignan,  thought 
that  he  had  performed  a  truly  diplomatic  miracle  and 
extinguished  the  conflagration  that  then  threatened 
Europe.  But  how  to  represent  such  a  pretension  ? 
They  remembered  that  in  847  Leo  IV.  had  by  mak- 
ing the  signi  of  the  cross,  extinguished  a  fire  that  was 
ravaging  the  Borgo  Santo  Spirito  !  At  the  risk  of 
seeming  irreverent,  I  must  confess  my  want  of  inter- 
est in  this  fresco,  in  which  more  than  anywhere  else 
the  principal  defect  of  the  Stanze  comes  out,  namely, 
the  excessive  size  of  the  figures  for  the  limited  space 
of  the  rooms.  In  the  Incendio  this  disproportion  is 
most  disagreeable ;  while  clumsy  repaintings  have 
not  lightened  the  ruddy  execution  of  Giulio  Romano : 
posed  so  as  to  bring  out  all  their  muscles,  the  atti- 
tudes of  these  giants  hardly  tend  to  invest  them  with 
much  interest,  disposed  about  a  court  where  they 
seem  nearly  as  big  as  the  houses.  The  fresco  does 
not  in  any  way  recall  the  manner  of  Michael  Angelo, 
only  it  has  been  arranged  in  such  a  way  as  to  fulfil 
the  theories  which  he  patronized. 

But  behold  !  the  king  of  France,  instead  of  being 
Attila  king  of  Huns  and  Ogres,  has  now  become  the 


THE  STANZE.  480 

benevolent  Charlemagne — with  the  features  of  Fran- 
cis I. ;  this  in  a  picture  of  the  justification  of  Leo  III. 
before  the  son  of  Pepin — a  solemn  scene,  in  which 
the  pontiff,  freed  from  all  imputation  in  the  presence 
of  the  two  courts,  has  only  in  the  following  chapter 
to  croAvn  as  emperor  the  rival  of  Charles  V.,  and  to 
stipulate  for  the  wages.  The  sceptre  is  surmounted 
by  a  fleur-de-lis ;  behind  the  emperor, — -a  striking 
portrait  of  Francis  I.  before  he  wore  a  beard, — -a 
page,  holding  on  his  knees  the  crown  of  the  Lombard 
kings,  is  a  likeness  of  Hippolito  de'  Medici,  the  holy 
father's  nephew.  At  this  period,  when  art  is  used 
merely  as  the  instrument  of  politics,  Raphael  seems 
to  have  become  indifferent  even  to  the  modifications 
which  his  designs  undergo  ;  he  yields  the  trust  to 
Francesco  Penni  and  to  Vicenzio  of  San  Geminiano. 
Li  the  spirited  representation  of  a  Defeat  of  the  Sara- 
cens at  Ostia  by  the  troops  of  Leo  IV.,  however,  the 
master  reappears :  this  was  intended  to  encourage 
the  crusade  against  the  Turks  who  had  menaced 
Italy ;  Raphael  perpetuated  the  patriotism  of  the 
ages  of  Sixtus  IV.  and  Nicholas  V.  This  canvas 
was  inspired  by  a  singular  event :  after  the  death  of 
his  brother  Julian  in  1515,  Leo  X.  went  to  bury  his 
grief  at  Citta  Lavinia,  near  Ostia,  and  Avas  very  near 
being  carried  off  in  broad  daylight  by  some  Barbary 
pirates,  so  ill  were  the  coasts  guarded.  Unhappily, 
this  has  been  in  great  part  repainted.    ' 

To  estimate  the  difference  between  the  true  works 


i90  KOME. 

of  a  master,  and  the  efforts  of  the  most  conscientious 
disciples,  we  have  only  to  contemplate  on  the  ceiling 
of  this  chamber,  which  was  completed  in  the  spring 
of  1515,  four  large  medallions  by  Perugino,  Avhich 
Raphael  respected,  and  which  represeiit — the  Trinity 
surrounded  by  the  Apostles  ;  God  in  the  midst  of  the 
Angels ;  Christ  between  Justice  and  Faith ;  and 
Jesus  between  Moses  and  8.  John,  surrounded  by 
seraphim.  In  these  subjects,  where  the  idea  of  the 
artist  is  rendered  faithful  and  complete  by  unity  of 
execution,  the  swan  of  the  Umbrian  school  discloses 
all  his  softened  grace.  From  this  standpoint  we  can 
measure  the  distance  that  divides  the  first  works  of 
Raphael  from  the  series  of  vast  undertakings  made 
to  order  into  which  the  Stanze  degenerated. 

If  Raphael  had  a  share,  as  he  most  probably  did, 
in  the  design  of  the  Appearance  of  the  Cross  to  the 
rival  of  Maxentius  while  he  was  in  the  act  of  harangu- 
ing his  troops,  at  any  rate  it  is  certain  that  Giulio 
Pippi  overloaded  the  composition  with  episodes,  such 
as  the  introduction  of  the  Dwarf  Gradasso  Berettai, 
whose  buffooneries  amused  the  court,  and  who,  to 
please  Hippolito  de'  Medici,  is  planted  there,  his 
brow  surmounted  by  a  giant's  helmet.  Raphael  pur- 
posed to  treat  the  Battle  with  Maxentius  on  the  Mil- 
vian  bridge  with  his  own  hand,  and  commenced  the 
work :  after  his  death,  Giulio  Romano  executed  the 
cartoons  in  fresco,  at  the  same  time  respecting  two 
figures.  Justice  and  Courtliness  {Co))iitas),  which  his 


CAMERA  BELLA  SEGNATURA.  491 

master  had  already  painted,  in  oil,  this  has  caused 
them  to  turn  brown,  and  adds  to  their  suppleness  a 
solidity  that  rather  jars.  Let  us  not  forget  that  the 
Defeat  of  Maxentius  has  served  as  a  model  for  all  the 
great  battle-pieces,  and  especially  for  those  enormous 
canvases  in  which  Lebrun  immortalized  Lewis  XIV. 
under  the  name  of  Alexander  the  Great. 

It  may  be  as  well  to  mention  for  the  benefit  of 
those  who  have  not  been  to  Rome,  that  the  Camera 
della  Segnatiira — so  called  because  a  pontifical  tribu- 
nal once  held  its  sittings  there — has  on  its  walls  the 
Dispute  on  the  Holy  Sacrament,  placed  opposite  the 
School  of  Athens,  as  well  as  Jurisprudence  facing 
the  Parnassus,  and  that  the  four  medallions  so  often 
engraved.  Theology,  Philosophy,  Poetry,  and  Justice, 
adorn  in  this  same  room  a  vault  on  which  the  artist 
has  placed  subjects  from  Scripture  by  way  of  pen- 
dentives.  Thus  this  Tribune  consecrated  to  Raphael 
contains  the  most  august  wonders  of  his  imagination 
and  his  pencil. 

The  plan  of  the  work  is  easily  described :  to  per 
sonify  in  the  persons  of  the  principal  men  of  genius 
in  the  world's  history,  those  doctrines,  arts,  and 
sciences  which  have  contributed  most  to  the  glory  of 
humanity  ;  then  to  bring  these  researches  after  sov- 
ereign truth  and  sovereign  beauty  to  an  issue  in  the 
faith  symbolized  by  the  Eucharist.  But  in  propor- 
tion as  the  scheme  is  simple,  so  are  the  accessory  de- 
ductions, the   arguments  of  the  work,  complex  and 


492  ROME. 

manifold.  In  these  days  we  are  inclined  to  criticize 
the  conditions  of  an  art  which  could  not  reach  its 
fullest  development  without  recourse  to  theology : 
but  in  the  time  of  Raphael,  such  teachings  were 
more  widely  diffused  by  the  universities  than  they 
are  now,  and  the  subtle  imaginations  of  the  great 
artists,  penetrated  with  figures  taken  from  the  Bible, 
or  the  fathers  and  doctors  of  the  Church,  were  not 
exposed  to  the  dangers  of  that  modern  ignorance 
which  has  killed  religious  painting. 

From  a  material  point  of  view  these  frescoes  are 
less  damaged  than  is  usually  said ;  they  are  still  per- 
fectly legible;  and  have  even  preserved,  especially 
the  medallions  and  the  Dispute,  a  deUcacy  of  tints 
and  shading,  such  as  only  those  colorists,  who  are 
likewise  skilful  draughtsmen,  can  succeed  in  repro- 
ducing in  their  copies.  A  singular  attraction  in 
these  great  pieces  is  the  diversity  of  local  coloring ; 
thus  is  each  object  endowed  Avith  a  peculiar  character, 
and  monotony  avoided,  but  it  implies  an  extraordinary 
skill  in  handling  colors.  kSuch  is  the  perfection  of  the 
forms,  such  the  tranquil  harmony  of  these  composi- 
tions, that  in  their  presence  you  forget  the  almost  dis- 
maying share  accorded  to  metaphysical  ideas,  and 
are  charmed  by  a  pure  melody  sung  in  a  strange 
tongue. 

The  subject  is  the  poem  of  the  soul.  To  its  over- 
tures correspond  conceptions  of  divine  things,  and 
then   of  natural    {causarum   cofjnitio) — the    part    of 


CAMERA  BELLA  SEGNATURA.  493 

philosophy,  which  knows  better  whence  they  come 
than  where  they  go.  Hence  arises  the  sentiment  of 
right,  and  next  in  the  ideal  order,  the  sentiment  of 
beauty,  the  correlative  of  virtue, — art  and  poetry. 
These  are  the  four  summaries  that  Raphael  has  in- 
scribed in  emblematic  figures  on  the  vault.  Phi- 
losophy looks  far  away  ;  she  holds  two  volumes — one 
concerning  morality,  the  other  the  study  of  external 
phenomena.  Calm,  with  closed  eyes.  Justice  has  a 
diadem  of  iron,  the  metal  of  force  and  not  of  cupidity. 
Poetry  or  Inspiration  {numine  afflafur)  is  only  spirit 
and  light :  the  eye  is  keen,  the  lips  are  parted  to 
speak,  the  face  is  radiant.  Laurels  are  intertwined 
in  the  hair ;  a  lyre  to  the  left  and  a  book  to  the  right 
symbolize  inspiration  and  study.  Indifferent  to  ter- 
restrial objects,  austere  and  chaste.  Theology  points 
with  her  finger  to  the  Trinity  below ;  she  holds  only 
a  thick  black  volume — the  Gospels. 

The  other  pictures  in  the  kSegnatura  are  more  easily 
understood ;  so  it  will  be  enough  to  point  out  the 
wonderful  homogeneousness  of  the  whole,  and  the 
remarkable  variety  to  which  the  comparatively  simple 
scheme  has  lent  itself.  It  is  the  universal  religion 
derived  from  its  poets — Hesiod,  Homer,  Virgil,  and 
Dante.  Among  the  epics  of  these  masters  suppress 
the  Divine  Comedy,  and  Christian  art  would  have 
remained  Avithout  a  formula,  there  would  have  been 
no  Renaissance. 

Opposite   the   dogma   which   sums   up   the  whole, 


494  ROME. 

Raphael  has  depicted  the  intellectual  labors  of  the 
ancient  world  in  search  of  truth.  But  the  Word  had 
not  descended  ;  and  man  being  far  from  the  heavens, 
the  light  is  not  so  bright.  Thus  the  School  of  Athens 
has  a  certain  depth,  due  quite  as  much  to  the  inten- 
tion of  the  master,  as  to  the  tendencies  of  this  or  that 
fellow-worker.  It  is  a  just  and  philosophic  idea,  bor- 
rowed perhaps  from  our  mediaeval  glass  and  the  By- 
zantine frescoes,  that  of  classing  among  the  precur- 
sors Aristotle,  by  whom  logic  has  come  down  to  us, 
and  who,  with  authoritative  hand,  points  to  the  earth 
which  his  doctrine  has  subjugated ;  then  Plato,  with 
inspired  gesture  indicates  the  heavens,  whose  problem 
he  has  dimly  discerned.  They  are  surrounded  by  the 
diiferent  schools,  but  the  pagan  world  is  grouped 
around  them.  The  procession  of  Aristotle  is  numer- 
ous ;  the  spiritualistic  Plato  has  fewer  followers.  In 
the  camp  of  Aristotle  they  are  more  speculative : 
Euclid,  and  Archimedes  with  the  features  of  Bra- 
mante,  and  compass  in  his  hand,  are  surrounded  by 
their  disciples,  and  are  at  work  at  geometry.  One 
of  these  scholars,  seated  to  the  right  of  Archimedes, 
is  Frederick  II.,  Duke  of  Mantua,  brother-in-law  of 
a  nephew  of  Julius  II.  Zoroaster  unravels  the  sys- 
tem of  the  world  ;  Ptolemy  marks  out  its  geography  ; 
every  one  is  either  at  work  or  else  engaged  in  a  dis- 
cussion ;  but  the  pagan  prototype  of  the  ascetics, 
Diogenes,  who  has  just  thrown  away  his  cup,  turns 
his   back    on   the   schools,   and    by   his    indifference 


THE  SCHOOL  OF  ATHENS.  495 

demonstrates  the  vanity  of  systems.  Close  by  there 
dechire  themselves — vague  Negation,  personified  by 
Arcesilas  (the  symbol  of  uncertainty  is  turned  in  one 
direction  and  looks  in  another) ;  then  Doubt,  under 
the  impassive  and  contemptuous  figure  of  Pyrrho  ;  he 
watches  a  disciple  repeating  with  the  ardor  of  con- 
viction the  doctrines  of  Aristotle. 

Among  the  precursors  and  the  faithful  of  the 
Platonist  company,  are  Empedocles,  Epicharmus,  and 
Pythagoras,  with  Theologus  and  Theano,  Anaxagoras 
and  Archytas  near  them;  then  the  sombre  Heraclitus 
near  ^schines,  and  Socrates,  who  discerned  unity  ; 
he  is  standing,  instructing  his  pupils.  Close  on  their 
track,  follow,  after  Alcibiades  and  Xenophon,  the 
young  Duke  of  Urbino,  della  Rovere,  and  Raphael 
himself,  just  opposite  Perugino  ;  Vasari  placed  them 
behind  Zoroaster.  Finally,  a  goodly  number  of  those 
dreamers  Avho,  touching  the  divine  intuition,  by  a 
species  of  inspiration  deceive  themselves  like  Hip- 
pias,  placed  quite  at  the  bottom ;  or  who,  though  un- 
wearied seekers,  have  found  nothing  but  void  and 
melancholy.  A  tall  young  man  in  a  white  mantle 
fringed  with  gold  represents  Francis  Maria  della 
Rovere,  Duke  of  Urbino  having  been  adopted  by 
Guid'  Ubaldo.  The  classic  Aristotle  has  beside  him, 
in  a  niche  of  the  fa(^ade,  Minerva,  the  wise  goddess 
of  constituted  bodies  :  behind  Plato  is  Apollo  the  in- 
spirer.  In  one  of  the  grisailles  of  the  lower  portion 
is  represented  the  Siege  of  Syracuse,  in  reference  to 


496  EOME. 

Archimedes,  and  in  honor  of  the  martyrs  of  the  scien- 
tific  ideaL 

The  blameless  enforcement  of  right,  the  sentiment 
of  perfect  equity,  seemed  to  Raphael  so  far  above 
human  passions,  that  Jurisprudence  is  portrayed  alone, 
and  unaccompanied  by  any  historic  personage.  A 
head  with  two  faces.  Jurisprudence,  serene,  mild  in 
expression  like  clemency,  looks  with  her  young  pro- 
file into  a  mirror.  On  her  breast  is  fixed  in  a  medal- 
lion the  winged  head  of  a  Gorgon.  Moderation  offers 
her  a  bridle,  and  Penetration  his  torch.  The  past 
instructs  her :  she  looks  behind  her  with  the  profile 
of  an  old  man.  Protecting  Force,  armed  with  a 
green  branch,  which  would  be  an  olive  if  la  Bovere 
did  not  mean  it  for  an  oak,  and  seated  on  a  lion,  com- 
pletes this  exquisite  and  noble  group,  which,  for  a 
wonder,  Audran  has  not  made  too  dull :  people  may 
form  a  tolerably  just  idea  of  it  at  our  School  of  Fine 
Arts,  from  an  excellent  copy  by  Paul  Baudry.  The 
neighboring  compartment  is  shared  between  the  civil 
and  the  common  law  :  on  one  side  Justinian  hands 
the  Digest  to  Tribonian ;  on  the  other,  Gregory  IX. 
receives  the  Decretals,  Avith  the  features  of  Julius  II., 
who  is  attended — priceless  likenesses — by  two  car- 
dinals destined  to  be  his  successors,  Giovanni  de' 
Medici,  still  young,  who  is  to  be  Leo  X.,  and  Alex- 
ander Farnese,  who  will  become  Paul  III.  Near 
them,  a  third  prelate  represents  the  Cardinal  del 
Monte.      It  IS  in  the  background  of  this  fresco  that 


MOUNT  PAENASSUS.  497 

chance  has  executed  by  Raphael's  hand  a  striking 
Ukeness  of  Napoleon  I.  The  authenticity  of  these 
pictures  has  been  questioned  :  they  are  the  master's; 
only,  having-  been  more  damaged  than  the  others  by 
the  Tedeschi  of  the  Constable,  they  have  been  more 
restored.  In  the  grisailles  of  the  plinth,  which  carry 
out  the  idea  in  its  development,  and  which  were  ex- 
ecuted by  Polydorio  da  Caravaggio,  aided  by  Maturino 
the  Florentine,  Moses  and  Solon  promulgate  their 
laws. 

What  shall  Ave  say,  finally,  of  that  glorification  of 
poetry,  which  assembles  on  one  Parnassus,  to  honor 
the  Italy  of  Petrarch  and  Dante,  all  the  great  poets, 
under  tlie  patronage  of  the  Muses  and  the  presidency 
of  Apollo  !  Dedicated  to  the  revival  of  ancient 
literature,  this  work  breathes  all  the  enthusiasm  of 
the  sublime  years  which  opened  the  sixteenth  century. 
Placed  opposite  to  a  picture  of  blonde  and  tender  color- 
ing, the  Parnassus  has  a  firm  tone,  whose  amber  lights 
throw  out  the  adorable  figures  with  which  Raphael 
endowed  the  ten  Muses,  including  Sappho.  Under 
this  name,  the  master  immortalized  the  profile  of  one 
of  the  most  brilliant  figures  of  his  day,  the  courtesan 
Impei'ia,  to  whom  the  casuists  pardoned  much  because 
she  loved  the  beautiful  much.  Dying  young  and  be- 
■\vept  by  all  the  greatest  men,  the  idol  of  Augustin 
Chigi,  Imperia,  worthy  of  the  time  of  Pericles,  made 
herself  the  muse  of  that  friendship  which  encourages 
and  sustains.      Of  a  purer  celebrity,  Vittoria  Colonna, 

32 


498  ROME. 

— sprung  through  her  mother  from  the  Montefeltro 
family,  who  had  made  another  Parnassus  of  their 
pahice  at  Urbino, — is  drawn  seated,  sceptre  in  hand, 
at  the  feet  of  Apollo.  This  profile,  Avhich  when  por- 
trayed in  mcxlals  rivals  antique  cameos,  is  easily  rec- 
ognizable ;  in  immortalizing  this  heavenly  creature, 
Raphael  rewarded  her  beforehand  for  the  devotion 
with  which  she  was  soon  to  surround  INIichael  Angelo  ; 
a  holy  flame,  which  was  the  consolation  and  stay  and 
last  joy  of  the  noble  old  man.  Homer  and  Pindar, 
Virgil  and  Dante,  Alc?eus,  Horace,  Ovid,  Propertius. 
old  Ennius,  Plautus,  Terence,  Boccaccio,  with  Peti'arch 
and  Sannazarius  who  sang  of  the  Virgin,  form  on  the 
holy  mountain  a  procession  attendant  on  the  goddesses. 
Not  very  pitiful  towards  bad  poets,  Raphael  still,  in 
response  to  the  wish  of  Julius  H,,  admitted  to  this 
company  Francesco  Berni,  further  protected  by  his 
relationship  to  Cardinal  Bibbiena ;  but  he  traced  be- 
hind the  author  Rime  hurlcsche,  which  Corinna  and 
Sappho  eye  with  astonishment.  By  way  of  moral  he 
painted,  as  a  pendentive,  the  Contest  of  Phoebus  with 
Marsyas,  in  which  the  winner  contents  himself  with 
flaying  alive  the  proxime  acccssit  of  the  competition. 
The  Apollo  Musagctes  playing  a  violin  on  the  peak 
of  Parnassus  is  a  fine  figure  of  an  inspired  performer. 
They  relate  in  this  connection,  that  one  evening  a 
very  handsome  virtuoso  came  to  play  before  Julius 
n.  at  the  Vatican;  as  he  was  leaving  the  pope  said  to 
Sanzio — ''  Now  we  have  found  our  Apollo  !" 


POETRY  AND  PHILOSOPHY.  499 

To  show  Raphael's  power  as  a  coloriijt,  it  is  only 
necessary  to  isolate  one  of  the  corner  panels, — that, 
for  instance,  in  which  the  figures  of  Poetry  and  Phi- 
losophy surmount  the  masterpiece  of  the  Fall.  In  the 
latter  the  gilded  field  of  the  sky,  colored  by  a  delicate 
chequer  imitating  mosaic,  plays  with  the  verdure  of 
the  foreground,  whence  stands  out  Avith  rosy  freshness 
the  young  and  supple  body  of  the  first  woman  :  the 
arabesques  of  the  frame,  in  which  pearl-grey  and  blue 
are  harmonized  by  golds  accentuated  by  flame-color, 
isolate  and  bring  out  this  wonderful  gem.  The  finest 
of  the  four  medallions  as  a  piece  of  color  is  Philosophy. 

The  ceiling  of  the  Sixtine  chapel,  and  the  Camera 
della  Segnatura,  present  a  synthesis  of  modern  art 
raised  to  the  rank  of  ancient  art ;  this  is  my  reason 
for  closing  our  pilgrimage  through  Rome  with  a  study 
of  those  two  masterpieces. 


INDEX. 


Ab^lard,  on  S.  John  Lateran,  327. 
Academy,  the  French,  362-366. 

ofS.  Luke,  163-165. 
Acqua  Argentina,  281. 
Adalbert  II.  of  Tuscany,  66. 
/Ediles.tlie,  23,  25. 
^milius  Lepidus,  the  Censor,  39. 
iEneas  Sylvius,  see  Pope  Pius  II. 
Agnese,  S.,  137. 

Basilica  of,  see  Basilicas. 

Catacombs  of,  143,  146-148. 

Agrippa,  M.,  bronze  head  of,  13. 

Pantheon  of,  11-12. 
Agrippina,  24. 
Alba  Longa,  314. 
Albano,  310-312. 
Albergo  dell'  Orso,  8. 
Alenton,  tomb  of  Cardinal  d',  125. 
Alexius,  S.,  legend  of,  117-119. 
Alimentus,  Lucius  Cincius,  60. 
Allobrogieus,  F.  M.,  87. 
Ambrose,    8.,    recounts    legend   of 

Domine  quo  X'adis,  255-256. 
Ammanato,  statues  at  S.  P.  in  Mon- 

torio,  18. 
Ampere,  house  of,  182. 
Anarchus,  King,  14. 
Ancus  Martins,  39,  282,  283. 

citadel  of,  16. 
Angelico,  Fra,  198,  204. 

Capella  S.  Lorenzo,  482-483. 
Angelo  Castle,  61,  6.3-67,  77-78. 
Michael,  bust  of,  175. 
ceiling  of  Sixtine  Chapel,  473- 

481. 
Last  Judgment,  466-468. 
S.  Maria  degli  Angeli,  353-354. 
Moses,  251-254. 
Pauline  Chapel,  468-469. 
Pieta,  2.33. 

Sixtine  Chapel,  463-464. 
statue  of  Christ,  201. 
Antipolis,  16. 
Antoninus  Pius,  pedestal  of  Column 

of,  7,  and  note. 
Appian  Way,  the,  256-260. 

Christian  scouts  on  the,  150. 
Appius  Claudius,  aqueduct  of   the 

Censor,  256. 
Aqulnus,  S.  Thomas,  tells  legend  of 

the  Crosier,  211. 
Arch  of  Constantine,  89. 
of  Dolabella,  160. 
of  Drusus,  255. 

Quadrifrons,     called  of  Janus, 
278-279. 


Arch  of  Septimius  Sevems,  87-88, 279. 

of  Titus,  88,  89. 
Arcodei  Pantani,  87. 
Arnold  of  Brescia,  171. 
Augustine,  S.,  30. 

of  Hippo,  135. 
Aurora  of  Guercino,  391. 

of  Guido  Reni,  45-46. 
Aventine,  the,  39,  281-284. 

Bambino,  the,  183-184. 
Baptistery,  S.  John  Lateran,  327-328. 
Barberini  Palace,  see  Palace. 
Bartolommeo,  Fra,  in  Rome,  352. 

S.,316. 
Basilica,  ^Emilian,  25,  33. 

S.  Agnese  fuori  le  Mura,  138-139. 
S.  Clemente,  93-119. 
Constantine,  25,  26. 
S.  Giorgio  in  Veiabro,  279,  280- 

281. 
S.  John  Lateran,  32,  32.5-333. 
Julia,  25,  26. 
S.  Lorenzo  fuori  le  Mura,  368- 

372. 
S.  Maria  Maggiore,  381-383. 
S.  Paolo  extra  Muros,  26,  32-37. 
S.  Peter,  215-2"0. 

Baldacchino,    221-222,    227- 

228. 
Baptistery,  232-233. 
Ceremonials,  247-250. 
chair  of  S.  Peter,  228-229. 
Columns  from  the  Temp'.c 

227-228. 
Confession,  226-227. 
Construction,    218-220,    222- 

224. 
dome,  219-220. 
dome  (ascent  of   the),  240- 

243. 
domes,  214. 
facade,  215. 

Grand  Relics,  228,  250. 
Holy-water  vessels,  217-218. 
Jubilee  door,  216. 
nave,  220,  221. 
navicella,  215-216. 
Sacristies,  237-239. 
tombs,  statues,  etc.,  229-237. 
view  of  the  interior.  216-218. 
worldly  character,  224. 
S.  Peter  (original  building),  225. 
S.  Sebastian,  255. 
Ulpian,  321-323. 
Basilicas,  27-32. 

501 


502 


INDEX. 


Baths  of  Caracalla,  91-93. 

of  Trajan,  210. 
Bembo,  Cardinal  and  Raphael,  265- 

206. 
Benedict,  S.,   street   in   which   he 

stayed,  121. 
Bernard,  S.,  vision  of,  37. 
Bernardino,  S.,  of  Siena,  186. 
Bernini,  colonnades  of  S.  Peter's,  8, 
9, 10. 

fountain  on  Piazza  Barberini,  2. 

tomb  of  Urban  VIII.,  229-230. 
Bible,  the  Alcuin,207. 
Blasius,  S.,  legends  of,  115. 
Bocca  della  Verita,  135. 
Bonivard,  description  of  Leo  X.,  by 

Franci.s,  200. 
Borghese  Palace,  see  Palace. 

Scipio,  46. 

Villa,  see  Villas. 
Borgo,  suburb  of  the,  62. 
Borromini,  13,  47. 
Botticelli,  Sandro,  Sixtine  Chapel, 

471,473. 
Bourbon,  Constable  de,  67. 
Bramante,  18,  47. 
Bridges,  ancient,  187. 
Bridget,  S.,  crucifix  of,  36. 
Broccoli,  3. 

Bruno,  S.,  statue  of,  236. 
Brutus,  J.,  24. 

bust  of,  176-177. 
Burial  of  the  dead,  the  custom,  144. 
Butler,  Allen,  on  S.  Clement,  101. 

Csecilia  Metella,  sarcophagus  of,  273. 

tomb  of,  257-258. 

S.,  121-122,  150-151. 

tomb  of,  151. 
Cselian,  the,  159. 
Ceecilii,  catacombs  of  the,  149. 
Cfecilius,  247. 

Csetani,  fortress  of  the,  258. 
Caius  Cestius,  pyramid  of,  38. 
Caligula,  circus  of,  244. 

Palace  of,  see  Palaces. 
Calixtus,  S.,  catacombs  of,  148-158. 

church  of,  see  Church. 
Camaccini,  36. 
Campagna,  the,  137-138. 
Campidoglio,  Piazza  del,  170-172. 
Candelabrum,  the  Paschal,  35. 
Candlemas  Day,  248-250. 
Candlestick,     seven-branched,    89, 

and  note. 
Cannva,  tomb  of  Clement  XIII.,  237. 

of  Pius  VI.,  227. 
Capella,  tomb  of  Bernardino,  162. 
Capitoline,  the,  182-183. 

Museum,  172-175. 
Caracalla,  88, 1.38,  279. 

baths  of,  91-93. 
Carracci,   A.,   frescoes   in    Farnese 
Palace,  272. 


Caraffa,  death  of  Cardinal,  78. 
Caravaggio,  M.  A.  da,  50,  52-53. 

Polidoroda,  81,  487,  497. 
Carnival,  the,  384-387. 
Casimir,  portrait  of  Maria,  233. 
Cassock,  worn  by  the  laity,  44. 
Castagno,  A.  del,    and   Veneziano. 

253. 
Castellani's  establishment,  359-361. 
Castle,  S.  Angelo,  61,  63-67,  77-78. 
Castor  and  Pollux,  statues  of,  170. 
Catacombs,  the,  142-158. 

of  S.  Lorenzo,  369-370. 
Cathedra,  28, 147. 
Catherine  of  Bosnia,  tomb  of,  185. 

of  Siena,  S.,  house,  82. 

tomb,  199. 
Catiline  Conspirators,  the,  168. 
Cato,  the  Censor,  27. 
Cavallini,  Pietro,  36, 124. 
Cavo,  Monte,  312,  316. 
Ceuci,  oratory  erected  by  Francesco, 
60. 

Palace,  see  Palace. 

portraits  of  the,  50-51. 

story  of  the,  68-77. 
Ceremonies  in  S.  Peter's,  247-250. 
Ceres  and  Proserpine,  see  Temple. 
Cervara  Grottoes,  the,  388. 
Chaplain,  Clement,  53. 
Charlemagne,  portrait  of,  335. 
Charles  V.,  the  daughter  of,  261. 
Charles  VIII.,  83. 
Chigi,  Agostino,  192. 

the,  398-399. 
Christian  symbolism,  338-342. 
Christianity,    Constantine     adopts, 
145,  322,  323. 

growth  of,  145. 

Tacitus  on,  145. 
Christina  of  Sweden,  tomb  of,  233. 
Churches  of  S.  Agnese,  137. 

S.  Agostino,  264-266. 

S.  Andrew  of  the  Valley,  205-207. 

S.  Angelo  in  Peseheria,  129. 

S.  Bartholomew,  187-188. 

S.  Cecilia,  121-122. 

SS.  Cosma   and   Damiano,  376- 
378. 

S.  Costanza,  138,  140-141. 

S.  Crispino,  58,  59. 

S.  Croce,  33:5-334. 

Domine  Quo  Vadis,  255-256. 

S.  Eustace,  190. 

S.  Francesca  Romana,  84-85. 

11  Gesii,  204-205. 

S.  John  and  S.  Paul,  159. 

SS.  Lorenzo  e  Damaso,  268-269. 

S.  Lorenzo  in  Miranda,  22,  85-86. 

Madonna  del  Tuffo,  312. 

S.  Marco,  82-83. 

S.  Maria  degli  Angeli,  353-354. 
in  Ara  Cceli,  183-187. 
in  Co'smedin,  134-135. 


INDEX. 


603 


Churches  of,  S.  Maria  in  Domenica, 
160. 
di  Lore  to,  84.   . 
della  Navicella,  160. 
della  Pace,  266-267. 
del  Popolo,  3%-400. 
de  Publicolis,  60. 
Scala  C(_eli,  37. 
Sopra  Minerva,  197-204. 
in  Trastevere,  123-126. 
S.  Martino,  ai  Monti,  210-212. 
S.  Onofrio,  126. 
S.  Paul  of  the  Three  Fountains, 

37. 
S.  Pietro  in  Montorio,  17-18,  76. 

Vincoli,  251-254. 
S.  Prassede,  378-.S81. 
S.  Pudentiana,  372-375. 
S.  .''tefano  Rotondo,  161-163. 
Trinita  de'  Monti,  354-357. 
S.  Urban,  260. 
Cicero,  and  the  Catiline  Conspira- 
tors, 168. 
freedman  of,  24. 
house  of,  292. 
Cirfo  Agonale.  137. 
Circus  oif  Domitian,  137. 
Maxentius,  260. 
Maximus,  306-309. 
a  Roman,  307-309. 
Claudius,  Appius,  167. 
Clement  of  Alexandria,  135. 

S.,  see  Pope  Clement  I. 
Clivus  Capitolinus,  22. 
Cloaca  Maxima,  281. 
Clodius,  24. 

and  Cicero,  291-292. 
Cloisters,  of  S.  .John  l.ateran,  332-333. 
S.  Paolo  extra  Muros,  37. 
S.  Pietro  in  Vincoli,  254. 
S.  Lorenzo,  371-372. 
S.  Maria  degli  Angeli,  354. 
Codes  of  Theodosius  and  Justinian, 

29. 
Coliseum,  15,  39-42. 
Collegio,  di  Roma,  207-208, 

della  Sapienza,  192. 
Colleone,  statue  of  B.,  171. 
Colonna,  the,  64. 

Palace,  see  Palaces, 
portraits,  346-349. 
Vittoria,  portraits  of,  349,  497-498. 
Colonnace,  the,  87. 
Colonnades  of  Bernini,  the,  8,  9, 10, 

213-214. 
Colossus  of  Rhodes,  323. 
Columns  of,  Antoninus  Pius,  7. 

the  Immaculate  Conception,  356. 
Marcus  Aurelius,  7  and  note. 
Trajan,  321,  323-325. 
Colurahs,coupled,at  S.  Costanza,  140. 
Comitium,  the,  23. 
Conclave,  the  Papal,  351,  353  and 
note. 


Confession,  origin  of  the  name,  28-29. 
Constantia,  tomb  of,  109,  140-141. 
Constantine,  138. 

adopts  Christianity,  145,  322,  323. 

authentic  likeness  of,  329. 

baptism  of,  328. 
Contucci,    Andrea,    tombs    of    the 

Sforza,  398. 
Convents  of,  the  Ara  Coeli,  186-187 
and  note. 

of  S.  Francesca  Romana,  181. 

of  Philippines.  207. 

of  Redemptorists,  159. 

of  S.  Sabina,  39. 

of  Sacre  Cceur,  357. 
Corso,  the,  6. 
Cortona,  Peter  of,  47. 
Costumes,  abandoned,  44. 
Council  of,  707,  380. 

Trent,  83, 125. 
Crescentius,  65,  68, 136. 
Cre.scenzio,  Castle,  see  Angelo. 
Crosier,  the  Pope's,  210-211. 
Crucifix  of  S.  Bridget,  36. 
Curia,  burning  of  the,  24. 
Curtian  Pool,  25. 
Curtius,  25. 
Cyriaca,  S.,  160. 
Cyril,  S.,  110, 116. 

scenes  from  the  life  of,  114. 

Diocletian,  decree  concerning  basil- 
icas, 29. 
Dolce,    Ludovico  on  Leonardo   da 

Vinci,  171. 
Domenichino  (Zampieri),  the  com- 
munion of  8.  .Jerome,  417-418. 
S.  Sebastian,  233-2:54,  354. 
frescoes  at,  S.   Andrew  of  the 
Valley,  205-206. 
Grotta  Ferrata,  316. 
at  S.  Maria  in  Trastevere,  124. 
at  the  Rospigliosi,  46. 
Dominic,  S.,  39. 
Domitian,  the  circus  of,  137. 

palace  of  293. 
Donatello,  Simone,  statue  of  S.  .John, 

100. 
DoMF,  the  holy,  32. 
Doria,  portrait  of  Admiral,  56. 

Palace,  see  Palaces. 
Duquesnoy,  statue  by  Francis,  84. 
Diirer.  Albert,  51. 
Dying,  treatment  of  the,  79. 

Egeria,  so-called  grotto  of,  259. 

Epiphany,  festival  of  the,  190-192. 

Epitaphs  in  catacombs  of  Calixtus, 
152-156. 

Etruscan,  remains  on  the  Aventine, 
282-283.     ■ 

Eudoxia,  founds  S.  Pietro  in  Vin- 
coli, 253. 


504 


INDEX. 


Farnese  Palace,  see  Palaces. 

Farnesina,  Villa,  192-195. 

Faun,  Praxiteles,  in  the  Capitol,  17?.. 

of  the  Palatine,  290.  442. 
Faustulus,  the  Shepherd,  28.5,  287. 
Ferdinand  IV.,  of  Spain,  17. 

and  Isabella,  18. 
Festival,  the  artists',  387-.'j89. 
Flaminian  Way,  the,  262. 
Flora,  of  the  Coliseum,  41  and  note. 
Foutana,  D.,  9, 121,  343. 

tomb  of  Christina  of  Sweden,  233. 
Food,  of  the  Romans,  2-3. 
Foot,  colossal  bronze,  38. 
Fornarina.  the,  47-49. 

bakery  of  the,  16. 
Fortresses,  on  the  Via  Appia,  257-258. 
Forum,  Boarium,  278. 

of  Nerva  (or  Transitorinm),  87. 

Romanum,  14-15,  21-26,  278-279. 

Trajan's,  321-325. 
Foundling  hospital,  178-180. 
Fountains,  the  Barcaccia,  355-356. 

Piazza.  Barberini,  2 

Bocca  della  Verita,  134. 
S.  Pietro,  215. 

the  Pauline,  120-121. 

della  Tarterughe,  '277. 

Trevi,  4-6. 

at  Tusculum,  318-319. 
Francesca  Romana,  S.,  church  of, 
84-85. 

convent  of,  181. 
Francis  d'Assisi,  S.,  121. 

and  the  Presepio,  190. 
Francis  I.,  portrait  of,  489. 
Frascati,  320. 
Funerals,  79. 

Galba,  death  of,  25. 
Galileo,  357. 

Galla  Placidia,  arch  of,  35. 
Galleria,  La,  310. 
Galleries,  Barberini,  46-51. 

Borghese  (Palace),  393-396. 
(Villa),  400-403. 

Capitoline,  17'2-177. 

Colonna,  345-350. 

Doria,  53-57. 

Lateran,  336-342. 

S.  Luke,  163-165. 

Rospigliosi,  45-46. 

Sciarra,  51-.53. 

Vatican,  410-499. 

Villa  Albani,  389-391. 

Villa  Ludovesi,  391-392. 
Gallo,  A.  di  San,  84. 
Garbo,  Raftaellino  del,  201. 
Garofalo,  51. 

Gattamelata,  statue  of,  171. 
(lemonife,  the,  23,  25. 
Germanicus,  24. 

house  of,  295  note. 
Geta,  138,  279. 


Ghetto,  the,  132. 

Ghirlandajo,  Dom.,  471. 

Giles,  S.,  115, 116. 

Giotto,  fresco  atS.  John  Lateran,  329. 

the  Navicella,  21.5-216. 

paintings  at  S.  Peter's,  239. 
Gladiator ,  tne  Dying,  172. 
Glass,  stained,  398. 
Goat,  Valley  of  the,  13. 
Goethe,  392. 
Gozzoli,  Benozzo,  202. 
Grsecostasis,  the,  23. 
Graffiti,  found  on  the  Palatine,  304. 
Greek,  language  of  the  early  church, 

147. 
Gregory  the  Great,  see  Pope  Greg- 
ory I. 
Grotta  Ferrata,  315-316. 
Guercino,  391. 
Guerra,  friend  of  Beatrice  Cenci,  69, 

70,  71. 
Guerrazzi,   on   the    history    of  the 

Cenci,  76,  77. 
Guido,  Reni,  Aurora,  4.5-46. 

portrait  of  Beatrice  Cenci,  50-51. 

of  Tuscany,  66. 
Guiffier,  French  Ambassador,  355. 
Guiscard,  l)uke  Robert,  and  Greg- 
ory VII.,  96-97. 

Heliogabalus,  92. 

Henry  IV.  and  Gregory  VII.,  96. 

Hercules,  colossal  statue  of,  274-'275. 

Herodes,  Alticus,  villa  of,  259-260. 

Hildebrand,  see  Pope  Gregory  VII. 

Holbein,  portrait  of  Lorenzo  Colon- 
na, 347. 

Honorius,   laws   relating  to   Chris- 
tians, 29. 

Horatius  Codes,  39. 

Hospitals  of,  La  Consolazione,  177- 
178. 
S.  Michael,  39, 178. 
S.  S pi ri to,  178-180. 

Hugo  of  Provence,  66. 

Hut  of  Faustulus,  287. 

Incineration,  custom  of,  144. 
Ignatius,  tomb  of  S.,  204-205. 
Imperia,  portrait  of,  497. 
Ina,  the  Saxon  king,  180. 
Indulgences,  the  sale  of,  2'23. 
Intermontium,  the,  '23. 

Janiculum,  the,  16. 
Janus,  16. 

so-called  arch  of,  278-279. 
Jerome,  S.,  158,  '283-284. 
Jews,  the  carnival  standard,  385. 

quarter  of  the,  132. 
Joanna  II.,  portrait  of,  .55. 
John,  Deacon,  quoted,  327. 
Josephus,  89. 

on  execution  of  captives,  167. 


INDEX. 


505 


Jiigurtha,  168. 
Julia,  138. 

Julius  Cfesar,  house  of,  292. 
Juuo,  temple  of,  129. 
Jupiter,  temples  of.  26,  129,  183,  287. 
Justice,  statue  by  G.  della  Porta,  18, 
229. 

Kircher,  Father  Athanasius,  208. 

Lacordaire,  Father,  39. 

Lambs,  the  blessing  of  the,  139. 

Lanfranco,  206. 

Lateran,  see  Basilica  of  S.  John. 

Lateranus,  Plautius,  325-326. 

Laurence,  S.,  story  of,  367-368. 

Lebrun,  Mme.  Vigee,  portrait,  164. 

Lectisternlum,  the,  38. 

Libertinus,  S.,  scenes  from  the  life 

of,  106. 
Lippi,  Filippino,  201. 
Livia,  house  of,  294-300. 
Llvy,  account  of  Tullia,  375-376. 
Loggie,  of  Raphael,  9,  483-484. 
Lorenzetto,162.  399. 
Lorraine,  Claude,  52,  55. 

house  of,  357. 
Lucas  of  Leydon,  54. 
Ludwig  of  Bavaria,  36. 
Luini,  Bernardino,  51. 
Luke,  Academy  of  S.,  163-165. 
Lupercalia,  the.  248. 

bas-relief  of,  289. 
Lustration,  repre.sentation  of  the,  440. 

Madama.  Villa,  261-263. 
Maderno,  Stephen,  121. 
Madonna,  statue  at  S.    Agostino's, 

264-265. 
Maiana,  B.  da.  204,  399. 
Mamertine  prisons,  the.  25,  16.5-169. 
Manlius,  Capitolinus,  167-168. 
Marino,  314-31.5. 
Marble,  its  use  by  ancient  Romans, 

2.58. 
Marcel  la,  death  of,  283. 
Marcus  Aurelius,  column  of,  6-7. 

equestrian  statue  of,  170-171. 

persecution  under,  121. 
Marforio,  172. 
Mario,  Monte,  61,  262. 
Marius,  trophies  of,  170. 
Marmorata,  the,  39. 
Marozia,66. 

Marsillac,  Peter  and  Claude  of,  398. 
Martyrs,  graves  of  the,  146-147. 
Massini,  poisons  his  father,  72. 
Matilda,  tomb  of  Countess,  234. 
Maxentius,  circus  of,  200. 
Mazarin,  Card.,  46. 
Medici,  Alexander  de',  261. 

Cardinal  de',  see  Pope  Leo  XI. 

Cosimo  III.  de',  362. 

Hippolito  de'.  portrait  of,  489. 


Melozzo  da  Forli,  239. 
Methodius,  114, 116, 117. 
Michael  III.,  114. 

S.  .appears  to  Gregory  the  Great,67. 

hospital  of,  39, 178. 
Minerva  Medica.  so-called    temple 

of,  209-210. 
Mino  da  Fiesole,  125. 
Moccoli,  fete  of  the,  386-387. 
Mole,  of  Augustus,  64. 

Hadrian's,  see  Castle  S.  Angelo. 
Monica,  tomb  of  S.,  264. 
Mons  Sacer,  137. 
Montaigne,  8, 18. 
Monte  d'Oro,  16. 
Monte,  sepulchral  chapel  of  the  del', 

18. 
Montelupo,  Raphael  of,  254. 
Mora,  the  game  of  161. 
Mosaics  of,  S.  Agnese,  139. 

Baths  of  Caracalla,  93. 

S.  Clemente,  99-100. 

SS.  Cosmaand  Damiano,  377-378. 

S.  Costanza,  140-141. 

S.  Francesca  Romana,  84-85  and 
note. 

S.  Giorgio  in  Velabro,  280,  281. 

S.  John  Lateran.  330-331. 

Lateran  Palace,  335. 

S.  Lorenzo,  368. 

S.  Maria  Maggiore,  140  and  note, 
382-383. 

S.  Maria  della  Xavicella,  160. 

S.  Maria  in  Trastevere,  123-124, 
and  note. 

S.  Martino  ai  Monti.  210-211. 

the  Navicella,  21.5-216. 

S.  Paolo  extra  Muros,  34-36. 

S.  Peter's.  231,233-234. 

S.  Prassede,  379-381. 

S.  Pudentiana,  140,  374-375. 

S.  Stefano  Rotondo,  162. 

Villa  Borghe-se,  402. 
Museums,  Capitoline,  172-175. 

Kircherian.  208. 

Lateran,  336-342. 

Vatican,  418-462. 
Mutius  Scasvola,  178. 

Nemi,  the  Lake  of,  311. 

Neptune,  temple  of,  13-14,  and  note. 

Nero,  burning  of  Rome,  244,  303. 

caricature  of,  302. 

circus  of,  244. 

flight  from  Rome,  137. 

Palace  of,  303. 
Nerva,  forum  of,  87. 
Nilus,  S.,316. 
Nimbus,  signification  of  the  square, 

109. 
Norbert,  statue  of  S.,  231. 
Numa,  tomb  of,  16. 

Obelisks,  ancient,  342-344. 


506 


INDEX. 


Obelisks  of.  S.  John  Lateran,  309,  342, 
and  note. 

S.  Peter's,  9,215,  243,  244,  245,  246, 
343-344. 

the  Piazza  del  Popolo,  309. 

the  Trinita  de'  Monti,  356. 

the  Qnirinal,  3.50. 
Octavia.  Portico  of,  129. 
Opus  Mini,  125. 
Oreagna,  Andrea,  Tabernacle  at  Or 

S.  Michele  by,  472. 
Orsini,  the,  64. 

fortress,  258-259. 
Ostian  Gate,  the,  38. 
Otto,  invasion  of  Emperor,  65. 

Paintings,  early  Christian,  148, 156- 
158. 

found  on  the  Palatine,  295,  297- 
301,306,307. 
Palaces,  of  Augustus,  292-293. 

Barberini,  1,46-51. 

Barbo,  82-84. 

Borghese,  393-396. 

of  the  Csesars,  see  Palatine  Hill, 
the. 

Caligula,  302-303. 

Cenci,  68-61. 

Chigi,  7. 

Colonna,  34.V3.50. 

of  the  Conservators,  175-177. 

of  Domitian,  293. 

Doria,  53-57. 

Farnese,  272-273. 

Ferrajuoli,  7. 

of  the  Governo  Vecchio,  131. 

Lateran  (ancient),  335. 
(modern),  336. 

of  Luerezia  Borgia,  251. 

Mattel,  277-278. 

of  Nero,  303. 

Piombino,  7. 

Quirinal,  350-353. 

Riario,  268-271. 

Ringhetti,  274. 

Rospigliosi,  45-46. 

Sciarra,  51-53,  and  note. 

Senatorial,  169-170. 

Spada.  272,  275,  276. 

of  Tiberius,  293-294,  301. 

Venetian,  82-84. 
Palatine  Hill,  the,  285-307. 
Pallia,  139. 

Pamphili  Gardens,  the,  195-196. 
Pantheon,  of  Agrippa,  11-12. 
Panvinio,  Onofrio,  on  Basilicas,  31. 

portrait  of,  317. 
Papirius  Cursor,  25. 
Paul,  S.,  169. 

Basilica  of  26-27,  32-37. 

head  of,  245. 

martyrdom  of,  37-38. 

medallion  likeness  of,  226. 

tomb  of,  33. 


Pauline  Chapel,  the,  46S-469. 
Peacocks,  bronze,  7,  and  note. 
Pelagian  heresy,  108. 
Penitentiary,  seat  of  the  Grand,  230. 
Persecution  under  M.  Aurelius,  121. 

under  Trajan,  101. 
Perugino,  51,  470,  472,  490. 
Pescheria  Vecchia,  130-132. 
Peter,  S.,  169. 

Basilica  (ancient),  212. 
(present),  8, 10,  215-246. 

burial-place,  245-246. 

chains  of,  253. 

chair  of,  228-229. 

legend  oi  Do  mine  quo  Vadis,  255- 
256. 

medallion  likeness  of,  226. 

spot  where   he   was   crucified, 
16. 

staff  of,  211. 

statues  of.  22.5-226,  238,  323. 
Philip  Neri,  S.,  264. 

della  Valla,  tomb  of,  185. 
Piazza,  Barberini,  2. 

Bocca  della  Veritfl,  133-134. 

del  Canipidoglio,  170-172. 

Campo  di  Fiori,  272. 

Colonna,  6-7. 

del  Laterano,  334-336. 

S.  Maria  in  Cosmedin,  133-134. 

Monte  Cavallo,  350,  351. 

Navona,  137. 

of  the  Pantheon,  13 

of  S.  Peter's,  214-215. 

of  S.  Pietro  in  Vincoli,  251. 

di  Spagna,  3.55-356. 
Pietrini,  the  San,  211. 
Pigna,  Giardino  della,  7. 
Pilgrimages  to  the  Catacombs,  152. 
Pincian,  the,  44,  3.57. 
Pine-Cone  (apple),  7,  and  note,  64. 
Pintelli.Baccio,  17. 
Pinturicchio,  frescoes   at   the  Ara 
Coeli,  186. 

S.  Croce,  333,  and  note. 

S.  Maria  del  Popolo,  397-398. 
Piombo,  Sebastian  del,  17,  194-195. 
Piso,  24. 
Pitra  Dom,  465. 
Pliny,  burial  of  live  prisoners,  167. 

Caligula's  obelisk,  244. 

incineration,  144. 
Pollajuolo,    tomb  of  Antonio   and 
Pietro,  253-254. 

Antonio,     tomb   of,     Innocent 
VIII.,  2.32. 

Sixtus  IV.,  234-235. 
Pomerancio,  163. 
Pompey ,  statue  of,  272,  275-276. 
Pons  Sublicius,  39. 
Ponte,  Molle,  262. 

Ripetta  (or  Cavour),  63,  note. 

Sisto,  1.33. 
Pontifex  Maximus,  title  of,  247. 


INDEX. 


507 


fontlff,  origin  of  the  word,  39,  and 

note. 
Pope,  Adrian  I.,  134. 
Alexander  VI.,  67. 

apartments  in  the  Vatican, 
463. 
Alexander  VII.,  7. 
Alexander    VIII.,   anecdote  of, 
412. 

tomb  of,  230. 
Anacletus  (S.),245. 
Anastasius  III.,  66. 
Benedict  XIV.,  tomb  of,  235. 
Boniface  I.,  119. 
Boniface  VIII.,  likeness  of,  329- 

330  and  note. 
Boniface  IX.,  66. 
Calixtus  I.,  123, 149,  and  note. 
Clement  I.  (S.),  Basilica  of,  93- 
119. 

Epistle  of,  101. 

history  of,  100-104. 

legends  from  the  life  of,  110- 
114. 
Clement  VII.,  67, 122,  261. 

tomb  of  200. 
Clement  VIII.,  122. 

and  the  Cenci,  69-74. 

statue  of,  203. 
Clement  X.,  tomb  of,  230. 
Clement  XI.,  61,  134. 
Clement  XII.,  13. 
Clement  XIII.,  tomb  of,  237. 
Clement  XIV.,  tomb  of,  230. 
Damasus  (S.),  158,  326. 
Eutychianus  (S.),  150. 
Eugenius  IV.,  13. 
Fabian  (S.),  150. 
Felix  IV.  (S.),  portrait  of,  378. 
GelasiusII.,134. 
Gregory  I.  (the  Great),  67,  211. 

birthplace  of,  159. 
Gregory  V.,  65. 
Gregory  VII..  68, 104. 

and  Robert  Guiscard,  96-97. 
(Anti)  Gregory  VIII.,  135. 
Gregory  XL,  82. 

lomb  of,  84. 
Gregory  XIII.,  Gallery  of  Maps, 

447. 
Gregory  XVI.,  7,  44. 

tomb  of,  230. 

Vatican  collections,  418-419, 
421. 
Honorius  I.,  138. 
Honorius  III.,  tomb  of,  185. 
Honorius  IV.,  tomb  of,  185. 
Innocent  II.,  123. 
Innocent  III.,  179,180. 

legend  of  S.  Peter's  staff,  211. 
Innocent  VIII.,  138. 

tomb  of,  232. 
Innocent  X.,  57. 

tomb  of,  230. 


Pope,  John  X.,  66. 
John  XI.,  66. 
John  XXIII.,  67. 
Julius  I.,  123. 
Julius  II.,  anecdote  of,  498. 

anti-French   policy   ot,  484- 
485. 

apartments  in  the  Vatican, 
482. 

decorations  of  the  Vatican, 
463-464. 

mausoleum  of,  254. 

tomb  of,  235. 
JuliusIII.,  Villa  of.  262. 
Leo  III.,  portrait  of,  335. 
Leo  IV.,  109. 
Leo  X.,  escape  of,  485-486. 

and  pirates,  489. 

policy  of  488-489. 

portrait  of,  496. 

statue  of,  175-176. 

tomb  of,  199-200. 
Leo  XL,  361-362. 
Leo  XII.,  44. 

monument  to,  230-231. 

and  S.  Paolo  extra  Muros, 
34. 
Martin  I.  (S.),  210. 
Martin  V.,  tomb  of,  330. 
Nicholas  I.,  116-117. 
Nicholas    III.,   mosaics    at    S. 

Paolo,  33. 
Nicholas  IV.,  382. 
Nicholas  V.,  125, 198. 

and  Fra  Angelico,  483. 
Pascal  I.,  122, 158. 
Pascal  II.,  97,  104. 
Paul  II.,  82. 
Paul  III.,  272. 

portrait  of,  496. 

tomb  of,  18,  229. 

villa  of,  288. 
Paul  IV.,  statue  of,  201. 
Paul  v.,  120. 
Paul  X.,  76. 
Pius  II.,  tomb  of,  206. 
Pius  III.,  tomb  of,  206. 
Pius  IV.,  78, 125. 

the  Casino  del  Papa,  447. 
Pius  VI.,  Hall  of  the  Animals, 
438. 

Biga,  452-453. 

Circular  Hall,  455-4.56. 

Hall  of  the  Greek  Cross,  420. 

Obelisk  of     Monte   Citorio, 
343. 

Pio-Clementine       Museum, 
433. 

tomb  of,  227. 

Vatican  collections,  461-462. 
Pius  VII.,  arrest  of,  353. 

Chiaramonte  Museum,  424. 

Hall  of  the  Animals,  438. 

Lapidary  Museum,  423. 


508 


INDEX. 


Pope,  Pius  VII.,  and  S.  Paolo  extra 
Mures,  33-34. 
tomb  of,  232. 

Vatican  Picture  Gallery,  414. 
Pius  IX.,  17,  23, 139,  184,  238,  257, 
269,  274-275. 
fliffht  of,  271. 
mile-stones  and  viaducts  of, 

312,  315. 
S.  John  Lateran,  330. 
Lateran  Museum,  338-339. 
on  S.  Peter's,  224. 
In  the  Quirinal,  352-3.53  and 

note, 
in  the  Sixtine  Chapel,  465- 
466. 
SergiusIII.,  66. 
Simplicius  (S.),  162. 
SixtusII.,150,  367-368. 
Sixtus  IV.,  tomb  of,  234-235. 
Sixtus  V.,6,9,  24.5. 

obelisks  erected  by,  342-343. 
Vatican  library,  410. 
Stephen  VOL,  66. 
SylvesterI.(S.),  210,  245. 

Acts  of,  322,  323. 
Symmachus  (S.),  7  note,  210. 
Urban  I.  (S.),  121, 1.50. 
Urban  VIII.,  tomb  of,  229-230. 
Zacharias,  280. 
Zephyrinus  (S.),  149  note. 
Popes,  chapel  of  the,  150. 

celebrate  facing  the  people,  221 , 

250,  330. 
medallions  of  the,  36. 
slipper  of  the,  210-211. 
temporary  coffin  of  the,  232. 
tombs  in  the  catacombs,  150, 151, 
1.52. 
Porseniia,  the  camp  of,  178. 
Porta  Angelica,  261. 
Appia,  255. 
Maggiore,  209. 
Mugionis,  286. 

Nomentana,  137, 138  and  note. 
Pancrazio,  120, 195. 
Pia,  137, 138  and  note, 
del  Popolo,  261. 
S.  >ebastiano,  148. 
Setimiana,  192. 
Tiburtina  (or  S.  Lorenzo),  404. 
Porta,  G.  della,  statue  of  Justice,  18, 

229. 
Portico,  of  Octavia,  129. 
Poussin,  Nicholas,  49-50,  51-52,  236. 

house  of,  357. 
Praecones,  23. 
Prsenestine  Road,  209. 
Presepio  of  Ara  Coeli,  184,  18S. 

of  Torre  Anguillara,  188-190. 
Pretextatus,  S.,  cemetery  of,  150. 
Prisons,  in  Castle  S.  Angelo,  77. 
the  Mamertine,  25, 165-169. 
Tullian,  165-169. 


Procopius,  64. 

Prudentius  Clemens,  the  poet,  326. 

Pudens,  Punicus,  the  Senator,  228, 

229,  373,  374. 
Pyramid  of  Caius  Cestius,  38. 

Quarries,  abandoned  sand-.  142. 
Quatremere  de  Quincy,  48-49,  272. 
Quintilii,  Villa  of  the,  259. 

Raphael,  164. 

cartoons,  378,  448,  465. 

Chigi  chapel  at   S.    Maria    del 
Popolo,  399. 

Fariiesina  frescoes,  193-194. 

Isaiah  at  S.  Agostino,  265-266, 268. 

and  Michael  Angelo,  266-268. 

the  Spozalizzio,  472. 

the  Stanze,  463-464,  484-491. 

statue  of  Jonas.  399. 

Sibyls  at  S.  Maria  della   Pace, 
266-267. 

Transfiguration,  17-18,  416-417. 

Villa  Madama  frescoes,  261-263. 

Violinist,  53. 
Regia,  of  the  Lateran.  27. 

of  the  Palatine,  305-306. 
Regionarium,  in  Schwertz  Convent, 

152. 
Regola,  Rione  della,  133. 
Rienzi,  Coladi,  129,171. 

house  of,  136. 
Ripa  Grande,  178. 
Ripetta,  61. 

Rocca  di  Papa,  312-314. 
Roma,  Quadrata,  285-287. 

Vecchia,  2.59. 
Romano,  Giulio,  238. 
Romans,  food,  2-3. 

habits,  14. 
Romulus,  city  of,  285-287. 

disappearance  of,  13. 
Rosa,  Martinez  della,  271. 

Cav.  Pietro,  289,  290,  291,  293,  294, 
300,  301,  303,  306. 

Salvator,  house  of,  357. 
Rospigliosi,  see  Palaces. 
Roselli,  Cosimo,  471^72. 
Rosellini,  Bernardo,  125. 
Rossi, Comm.G.B.de, 121, 148, 369, 371. 

Count  Pellegrino,  assassination 
of,  269-272. 
tomb  of,  268-269. 
Rostra,  the,  23. 

Sabina,  S.,  convent  of,  39. 
.Sallust,  private  cataconiBs  of,  144. 
Samnite,  trophies  displayed  in  the 

Forum,  25. 
Sansovino    (I    Tatti),   statue  of  the 

Madonna,  261-265. 
Santa  Croce,  family,  the,  60. 

Marquis  of,  kills  his  mother,  73 
Santi,  Giovanni,  345-346. 


INDEX. 


509 


Sarcophagus  of,  Csecilia  Metella,257. 

of  Constantia,  1-10,  454-455. 

of  Hadrian,  lid  of  the,  232. 

of  S.  Helen,  455. 

of    porphyry,    found   near    the 
Pantheon,  13. 

of  the  Portland  vase,  172. 

of  Probus  Anicius,  233. 
Sarcophagi  in  the  Farnese  Palace, 

273. 
Scala  Santa,  the,  335. 
Scherano  da  Settignano,  254. 
Schula  Xantha,  23. 
Sciarra  Palace,  see  Palaces. 
Scipio  da  GaiJta,  portrait  of  Lucrezia 

Petroni  Cenci,  50. 
Sebastian  del  Piorabo,  17,  56. 
Segnatura,  Camera  deUa,  491-499. 
Sejanus,  169. 

Seminaries,  scholars  of  the,  43. 
Septimius  Severus,    arch  of,  87-88, 

279. 
Sermonetta,  202. 
Servius,  the  death  of,  376. 
Severus,  Alexander,  123. 
Sforza,  equestrian  statue  of  Fran- 
cesco, 171. 

tombs  at  S.  Maria  del  Popolo,  398. 
Signorelli,  Luca,  470-471,  472-473. 
Sixtine  Chapel,  the,  9,  464-481. 
Slipper,  cross  on  the  Pope's,  210-211. 
Slodtz,  Michael,  236. 
Snuff,  use  of  by  Roman  clergy,  16-17. 
Spanish  stairs,"  the,  355. 
Stephen,  S.,  church  of,  161. 

feast  of,  160-163. 

tomb  of,  371. 
Stilicho,  the  assassination  of,  29. 
Stuart,  James  III.,  345. 
Stuarts,  tomb  of  the,  233. 
Subleyras,  Peter.  &5. 
Suburra,  the,  254-255,  375-376. 
Suetonius,  on  Pompey's  statue,  276. 
Sulla,  his  body  burned,  144. 

Tabularium  of,  22,  23. 
Suv<}e,  J.  B.,  director  of  the  French 

Academy,  363-364. 
Sylvester,  S.,  acts  of,  322,  323. 

Tabernse,  23. 

Tabularium,  the,  22,  23, 170. 

Tacitus,  on  burning  of  Rome,  244. 

on  Christianity,  145. 

on  Vitellius's  siege,  182. 

on  wall  of  Romulus,  285-286. 
Tanners'  quarter,  the,  133. 
Tapestries,  the  Quirinal,  352. 

the  Vatican,  378,  448,  465. 
Tarpeian  Rock,  the,  181-182. 
Temple  of  ^?2sculapius,  187. 

of  Antoninus  and  Faustina,  85- 
86. 

of  Bacchus,  260. 

of  Castor,  25,  287. 


Temple  of   Ceres   and   Proserpine, 
134. 

of  Concord,  22,  23. 

of  Faustina,  22. 

of  Fortune,  135. 

Hercules  (or  of  the  Sibyl,  or  of 
Vesta),  405.  406. 

of  Juno,  129. 

of  Jupiter,  129. 

of  Jupiter  Camillus,  183. 

of  Jupiter  Capitolinus,  26. 

of  Jupiter  Stator,  287. 

of  Mars  Ultor,  87. 

of  Neptune,  13-14  and  note. 

of  Peace  (so  called),  86. 

of  Romulus,  260,  376-377. 

of  Saturn ,  22. 

of  the  Sibyl,  405. 

of  the  Suri,  133. 

of  the  Twelve  Gods,  23. 

of  Venus  et  Roma,  22. 

of  Vespasian,  22. 

of  Vesta  (so  called),  133. 
Temperance,  of  the  Roman  people,  2. 
Tempesta,  163. 

Tertullian,  on  Christianity,  145. 
Testaceio,  Monte,  38-39. 
Theatres,  Pompey's,  274,  276. 

at  Tusculum,  319. 
Theodora,  65-66. 

Theodosius,  and  Christianity,  29. 
Thorwaldsen,   tomb  of  Pius    VII., 

232. 
Tiberius,  and  Piso,  24. 
Titus,  arch  of,  88-89. 
Tivoli,  404-409. 
Tolla,  romance  by  Edmund  About, 

345. 
Tombs  of,  Constantia,  109, 140-141 . 

of  Messalinus  Cotta,  258-259. 

of  M.  V.  Eurysaces,  the  baker, 
209. 

on  the  Appian  Way,  257-259. 
Torrita,  Jacopa  da,  330,  382-383. 
Torlonia,  excavations  by  Prince,  259. 
Torre,  Anguillara,  188-190. 

dei  Schiavi,  388. 
Tradition,  of  the  Trevi  Fountain,  5 

and  note. 
Transfiguration,    Raphael's,    17-18, 

416-117. 
Trastevere,  the,  15-16. 
Trent,  Council  of,  83. 

painting  of  the,  125. 
Tribunal,  28. 

Trier,  S.  Peter's  staff  at,  211. 
TuUia,  Livy's  account  of,  375-376. 
Tusculum,  317-320. 

Marquis  of,  66. 
Tyro,  Tullius,  24. 

Ulpian,  Basilica,  321-323. 

Library,  321. 
University  of  Rome,  192. 


510 


INDEX. 


Valentinian,  158. 
Valentino,  52. 
Valerius,  Corvus,  258. 
Valley  of  tlie  She-Goat,  13. 
Valerianus,   husband  of  S.  Cecilia, 

122,  150-151. 
Vatican,  Hill,  244-245. 
the  Belvedere,  434-438. 
Camera  della  Segnatura,  491-499. 
Cappella  di  S.  Lorenzo,  482-483. 
the  Circular  Hall,  455-459. 
Hall  of  the  Animals,  438-440. 
Biga,  452-454. 
Candelabra,  449-452. 
Greek  Cress,  419-420,  454-455. 
Maps,  447-448. 
Muses.  459-461. 
Pictures,  413-418. 
Tapestries,  448-449. 
gardens,  416-447,  462. 
library,  410-413. 
Loggie,4S2,  483-481. 
museums,   Braccio  Nuovo,  429- 
433. 
Chiaramonte,  424-429. 
Egyptian,  418-419. 
Etruscan,  421-422. 
Lapidary,  423-424. 
Pio-Clementine,  433-445. 
the  Stanze,  484-491. 
Velasquez,  57. 


I  Veneziano,  Domenico,  253. 

Ventura,  tomb  of  Father,  207. 
I  Venus  de'  Medici,  132, 408. 

Vercingetorix,  168. 
'  Verrocchio,  Andrea,  171,  203. 

Vesta,  so-called  temple  of,  133. 

Viaducts,  312. 

Via  Sacra,  24. 

Vicus  Tubcus,  24. 

View,   from  S.  Pietro  in  Montorio 
,      18-20. 

Villas,  Albani,  389-391. 
j         Borghese,  400-403. 
!         Cesarini,  311. 

d'Este,  407. 
1         Hadrian's,  407-409. 
Ludovesi,  .391-392. 
I         Maecenas  (the  so-called),  406. 
Medici,  361-366. 
Torlonia,  138. 

Vinci,  Leonardo  da,  171, 126-127. 

Virginius, 24. 
i  Viti,  Timoteo,  267. 

Vitiges,  attacks  Castle  S.  Angelo,  65 

Vitellius,  25. 

1  Winckelmann,390,  391. 

1  Zampieri,  see  Domenichino. 

Zeno,  the  tribune,  37. 
I  Zucchero,  78, 125. 


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